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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29879646">Boy Troubles</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Gilldemorte/pseuds/Gilldemorte'>Gilldemorte</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Ginny &amp; Georgia (TV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Angst, Angst and Feels, Angst and Humor, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Emotional Infidelity, F/F, F/M, Ginny had to try, Heavy Angst, Hunter is just there for comic relief, I can't help it though, Idiots in Love, Like, Maxine is a babe, Mental Health Issues, Multi, Panic Attacks, Sex, She belongs with Sophie though, So much angst, Teen Angst, They have to fight their feelings so hard, Trigger Warning - Anxiety, Trigger Warning - Mentions of Suicidal Ideation, Trigger Warning - panic attacks, probably too much angst, spoilers in the tags</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-03-06</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-05-16</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-16 02:55:56</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Explicit</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply, Underage</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>73</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>167,946</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29879646</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Gilldemorte/pseuds/Gilldemorte</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Ginny Miller loves her mom but is sick to death of moving around. She is determined to survive their time in Wellsbury unscathed and make it to the end of her education in on piece. She has a foolproof formula that works in every new town they move to: focus on your studies, keep your head down, and don't make a big splash.</p><p>Unfortunately, this new town is weird, and the residents are determined to ruin all her plans to stay under the radar.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Ginny Miller/Hunter, Ginny Miller/Marcus Baker, Ginny Miller/Maxine Baker</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>395</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>248</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <h1> Psycho moms and hormones </h1><p>Ginny Miller’s mom was a psychotic bitch. Everyone <em> thinks </em> their mom is a psychotic bitch, but Ginny Miller knew it as a certainty. She understood her mom, though; she had had a terrible life, no parents, and lived on the streets. If anyone deserved to be allowed to be a psychotic bitch, it was Georgia Miller. As a fierce mama bear of two children, she was always ready to be a bitch to protect her kids. But she was paranoid. Any slight against her daughter, Ginny, and the psycho claws <em>really</em> came out. </p><p>You see, Ginny’s dad was a beautiful African man named Zion, and as a result, Ginny was seen by society as black. Even though she was raised by her white mother and had no connection to her African roots, people took one look at her and saw a ghetto trash negro with no education. That wasn’t her problem though. People were just trash; she couldn’t blame them for sticking to society’s rhetoric that the colour of someone’s skin makes more of a difference than the contents of their minds. So, she could understand why her mom was such a psycho. And why she was a bitch. Ginny’s mom was her hero. But, <em> God, did that woman make her life difficult. </em> </p><p>They were moving to a new area for a fresh start. <em>  Again.  </em> Fifth time’s a charm though,  <em> aint it sugar? </em>  Georgia was certain that Wellsbury, Massachusetts would be different. They would finally have a place to “put down roots”. The only problem here was that she had been just as convincing before they moved to Houston as well. Ginny was getting sick of moving, of pretending there would ever be a place to put down roots. Her mom had never had roots. </p><p>She was chasing a dream and she had no idea how to even live in a world where it was possible for her to have roots. There was always something that was wrong. Something so terrible they had to move everything they owned and start afresh. To be fair, a dead, handsy step father was a pretty good reason to move. And this time, Georgia had purchased a house. Not rented, not borrowed, not stolen. Bought. An entire house just for them. Ginny, Georgia, and Austin. Maybe this time really would be better. A girl could dream, right?</p><p>After racing Austin to find the best rooms, Ginny collapsed on her bed and mentally cataloged the situation. Yes, she had barely been in the state and already she had met a charmingly racist police officer who assumed she must have stolen a BMW, the flashy sports car, because that’s what a ghetto negro with no education would do. Yes, she was starting a new school, again, where she would likely remain invisible and alone until they eventually moved again. In an area like this, that was the best she could hope for. </p><p>Ginny could just imagine how many people of colour lived in an area like this. She could probably count them on one hand. Her father’s parents were the type who would live in this area. Rich, successful black people who think the best way to showcase their success is to persistently surround themselves with rich, successful white people. Ignoring the suspicious glances from their non-coloured counterparts, and the charming ignorance of wondering how “people like them” could have made a life for themselves. Having to be perfect all the time because any slip up would prove to the haters that “of course, they were rotten from the start. It’s in their nature, can you blame them, really?”. </p><p>Yes, invisibility is all Ginny could hope for in a town like this; because God forbid they take notice of an educated black girl who has ambitions. She suddenly felt a profound, new understanding for Shrek in his swamp.  I guess it’s better to cast yourself away from society than allow them in and let them burn your life to the ground. </p><p>Just as that thought occurred to her, she heard a shrill, furious scream coming from outside. Running to the window and praying Georgia hadn’t already found a reason to skip town, Ginny caught the end of an altercation between a neighbouring mother and child. A tall, dark haired teenage boy was skulking sheepishly towards his house while his mother stood beside their car looking incredulously around. And there was Georgia, waving happily at the new neighbour-mom. She had been here for two minutes and already she was befriending the neighbourhood moms? How was that even possible? Ginny was ready to turn away from the window and finally start packing when she noticed the son-of-the-screamer in the bedroom window opposite hers. </p><p>Wow.</p><p>He was... wow. Okay. Maybe this town wouldn't be <i> so bad </i> to live in.</p><p>Well, at least she had the room with the best view. Suck it, Austin.</p><p>It wasn’t until after dinner, when she was on the phone to her dad, that she realised just how good that view was, though. She was mid-sentence, complaining to her dad about being the only black person in town when she spotted it. A bare torso, abs to die for, being revealed by her hot neighbour as he changed out of his top. </p><p> <em> ‘Stop staring, you absolute pervert’  </em> she thought to herself, but it was like her eyes were glued to the sight. She had never seen a topless boy before and she was not going to pass up her first free peep show.  <em> ‘Maybe, once he’s finished with the top, he’ll stand on a chair to take off the pants so I can get a good look at what’s going on down there’  </em> was the thought running through her mind when she realised that her mysterious exhibitionist had finished taking off his shirt. Was facing her direction. Was making eye contact with her as she stared shamelessly at his revealed chest. </p><p>“Hello? You still there, gummy bear?”</p><p>Shit. Not only had she been caught perving, she was doing it while on the phone to her dad, and now she was hiding under her window. Perfect. Just great.  <em> ‘Teenage hormones finally kick in and I’m talking to my dad when it happens. That’s one for the memoirs’.  </em> She must have said something to end the conversation with Zion, because the next thing she knew, she was sitting cross-legged on the floor, staring at the door. </p><p>Did she dare to peek out the window to see if it was safe to move? She could never show her face in this neighbourhood again. Would Georgia agree to let them move to a new town on the grounds of emotional duress? It was worth a try. Getting up to distract herself by talking to her mom, she completely forgot about the hiding-from-the-window, never-looking-out-there-again decision she had just made. Something was moving in the corner of her eye. </p><p>Trying her best to inconspicuously look out the window, she leaned forward to see what was happening now. Surprise, surprise, it was Mr. Exhibitionist climbing out his window. Because of course he was a typical bad boy who makes his mother scream and then climbs out the window at night. That’s exactly the kind of person you want catching you perving on them. He probably had all kinds of delicious revenge planned for exposing his neighbourhood stalker in the most embarrassing way possible. </p><p>Ginny couldn’t help but be bombarded by images of being humiliated for being such a pervert, while her exhibitionist neighbour looked on with a devilish look in his eyes, promising a world of pain for daring to watch him from afar. What the hell was going on? Some kind of fucked up sexual awakening spurred on by a few glimpses of a boy’s abs!  <em> Get a grip, Ginny. Have your sexual awakening at a more appropriate time. We can schedule it for next year.  </em> Yet again, it was at the most embarrassing point during her thought process that she realised she had left herself exposed at the window, and yet again, her mysterious neighbour had caught her staring. </p><p>Instead of running away and hiding again, Ginny decided to stand her ground this time. She was well within her rights to look out of her bedroom window. There was nothing wrong with admiring the scenery outside her new bedroom, and she wasn’t the one sneaking around and making her parents scream. She had nothing to be ashamed of! Yet, when he faced her and gave her a full salute, Ginny could not help the furious blush appearing on her face. Georgia was going to absolutely  <em> love </em>  this. Ginny, the absolute idiot, was going to die of mortification if she ever had to face this boy at school.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. My mom is a comedian</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>First day of school!</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <h1> My mom is a comedian </h1><p>Georgia Miller was a comedian. Or, she must have thought herself to be one. That is the only reason Ginny could think of for her to yell “Have fun, sweetie! Make friends, and I’ve packed plenty of condoms for you!” as she dropped her daughter at school. </p><p>Could she not read the vibe of this entire town? If their sex ed lessons were anything more in depth than the Mean Girls abstinence talk from their PE coach, she would be surprised. Shouting about condoms was not exactly going to help her daughter to be invisible. Maybe Georgia was sick of her daughter being invisible though. She did keep going on about the importance of being able to connect with other people. <em> ‘I never would have made it one day without the kindness of strangers’  </em> was an easy philosophy to come by when you had the right skin tone, the face of an angel, and the body of a goddess. </p><p>Of course, though, Ginny’s mom had been referring to her days living with a biker gang who taught her everything she needed to know about surviving in this cruel world. Georgia’s ability to charm and ingratiate herself into any group of people was almost like a weapon, and Ginny loved seeing her in action. Ginny just didn’t have that ability, though. She didn’t have the luxury of being a beautiful, powerful white woman - society’s ideal of what a woman should look like. She was an outcast, and she would constantly have to work against people’s assumptions based on her skin. It was exhausting to try to prove yourself to be worthy, to be perfect all the time. So, Ginny just didn’t bother. She didn’t need to connect with other people when she had Georgia. Georgia was all the connection she needed. Probably not the healthiest attitude to have, but she didn’t care. </p><p>Her newfound zen philosophy changed slightly when she walked into her AP English class. It wasn’t her fault though. Some middle-aged, bald, white dude took one look at her and started on the “we don’t think uneducated ghetto trash will be able to survive in this competitive environment” bullshit and, really, it was the last straw. First the police officers, and now the teachers? The people in charge of educating future generations, perpetuating this idea that black people can’t be well read or ambitious? </p><p>She essentially exploded on him, in front of the entire class, and let him know that she was prepared upstage all her non-coloured counterparts if he wanted to challenge her. Definitely not the best way to handle a racist in a position of authority, but English was supposed to be her safe space! Being able to express your thoughts and ideas about literature in a safe learning environment was the best kind of release. She had finally experienced it in her school in Houston and it made her forget how awful people could be. Now she remembered though, and she had just challenged her English teacher to make her life hell. Fantastic. The suspicious, incredulous gazes from her classmates really drove home the message that she had made a mistake and should probably hide in the toilets, crying, for the rest of the day. </p><p>That was, until she looked to her left and saw two beautiful blue eyes dancing with glee in her direction. Gorgeous, full pink lips curved up in a smile that almost suggested she was proud of this newcomer, framed by soft-looking skin that just begged to be stroked. Just as she thought her crush couldn’t grow any more, her new admirer spoke out to support Ginny with a sassy “Excuse me, I’m like super concerned about my education and the view of male superiority, too” finishing it off with a beautiful “And I have period cramps, so please can I go to the nurse?”. Mr. Asshole’s face went from shocked to horrified to furious in the few seconds it took for her to finish her sentence. </p><p>So, not only was their English teacher racist, but he was also apparently  uncomfortable with anything about basic female biology. Good to know. Ginny’s new co-conspirator, Maxine, raised her hands in silent applause then turned to face the front, her eyes promising future mischief. </p><p>Was everyone in this town just ridiculously good looking? Ginny’s libido needed to calm the fuck down. She couldn’t spend all of her time in this new town being mesmerised by everyone who looked in her direction. Apparently, this new sexual awakening didn’t care about a person’s gender either. Ginny was DTF with anyone who looked twice at her. She really needed to talk to Georgia about all this.</p><p>The rest of the lesson went by in a blur as the class answered fairly straightforward questions about The Crucible for the pop quiz. After handing her quiz to Sir Racist McBaldhead, she rushed to her locker to avoid any and all new sources of sexual frustration. Maybe Georgia was right to make that joke about condoms. If this is what puberty does to a person, it was a miracle that there weren’t more teenage pregnancies around here. </p><p>Seeing the way men acted around her mother and the way her mother behaved when a new guy caught her attention; Ginny started to worry that these feelings were only the beginning. Did adults really manage to function when constantly bombarded with these sexy thoughts all day? It didn’t make any sense. </p><p>With all these ridiculous thoughts running through her mind, Ginny decided that Operation Invisible was even more important than it had ever been in any other school. Yes, it was already off to a terrible start because of her outburst in English, but hopefully everyone would have forgotten about that by the end of the day. So long as she avoided eye contact and stayed as silent as possible for the rest of her lessons, she would be able to leave this place with an education and no babies. </p><p>With her new, brilliant plan of action in mind, she closed her locker ready to renew her efforts at surviving in this weird town. Only to be met with tall tallness next to her locker. Intense, mysterious eyes, and dark hair. She could only assume that if he lifted his top, she would be very familiar with the skin underneath. She cringed internally, trying to make herself as small as possible. Looking around for the best route of escape, she contemplated simply making a run for it, when he opened his mouth and started speaking to her. Maybe he didn’t recognise her and she was just in the way of his locker!</p><p>“ You’re new right? Just moved in across the street?”</p><p>And maybe her life was just a series of unfortunate events. Playing dumb would just drag out the conversation. Maybe she could apologise and start crying? Men are usually uncomfortable with a crying woman, but that would make Operation Invisible just that much more difficult. She needed to be forgettable, boring, quiet. She could do that; she had plenty of practice doing that. She looked at his shirt which said “Wednesday” on it. <em>  Perfect. Change the subject, end the conversation before he can out my voyerism, and disappear into the crowd.  </em> Operation Invisible was still on the cards.</p><p> In her blandest voice, Ginny intoned “It’s Monday”, while looking pointedly at his shirt. Nice and forgettable. As she turned to escape during his confusion, he responded too quickly for her.</p><p>“What kind of cultural wasteland are you from? You don’t know the band Wednesday?”.</p><p>She couldn’t believe her rotten luck. Seriously? A band called Wednesday? How did this become the start of a conversation? It was supposed to be the end of a very brief interaction, ending in her successful escape from a mortifying situation. Now, Ginny was faced with two options: prolong this conversation, allowing him to tease her about never hearing about whatever crappy band he was talking about; or pretend to know the band and quickly escape. Obviously, she went for option two.</p><p>“Yeah, I have. They have that one song--”</p><p>“No they don’t. They don’t exist. I just made them up” he interrupted, his gaze now boring into her own.  <em> For fuck’s sake, what is wrong with these people? I just want to quietly go to class. Can I go to class without any more human interaction please?  </em> As Ginny prepared to say something that would probably violate her plans to remain under the radar, a presence appeared behind her, saving her yet again from an awkward situation.</p><p>“Marcus, be gone” came the voice from behind her. Ginny didn’t dare to look behind her. She could smell her perfume and from the corner of her eye, she recognised the bright pink jacket worn by her new lady crush, Maxine. </p><p>Amazingly, Marcus (apparently his name was Marcus), simply looked between Ginny and Maxine, saluted, and left with a seemingly friendly, “See you around, Neighbour,” never to be seen again. Hopefully. Now, all Ginny had to do was thank her saviour, escape to find her History classroom, then go home and find out if Georgia knew anything about stopping puberty from ruining her life.</p><p>Instead, what came out of her mouth was “That’s amazing! How did you get him to go away?”. <em>  That’s probably not a normal way to start a conversation.  </em> The blush on her face that had appeared when Marcus started speaking to her was back with a vengeance. </p><p>“Yeah, sorry about him. He’s my twin brother and a total asshole. I should have done humanity a solid and…” as Maxine started a long rambling conversation about how terrible it is to have a twin, Ginny pondered the revelation that the two people who happened to start her sexual awakening just happened to be twin siblings. Was it like incest to have a crush on both of them? No, because no one would ever find out. And she would never act on any of her feelings because she was getting out of this town with an education and no babies. Although… if she acted on her feelings for Maxine, there would definitely be no babies.  <em> No. Bad Ginny.  </em> She really needed to get some perspective from her mom. If these feelings were here to stay, she had a lot of hard work ahead of her, trying to get rid of or ignore them. </p><p>She must have zoned out for too long in the conversation, because when she looked up, Maxine was looking at her expectantly.</p><p>“Well, I looked at your time table and noticed you’re in my History class now. Are you coming?” </p><p>Because, of course they would have the same History class. And of course, this gorgeous specimen of a human being would also be kind enough to show her around even though she was just standing there looking like an idiot. Operation Invisible was officially a total failure.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. I'm not going to survive puberty</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>First day of school, continued</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <h1> I'm not going to survive puberty. </h1><p>The History lesson was perfect. She and Maxine had arrived too late to find seats next to each other, so they had to sit at opposite ends of the classroom. The teacher was a plain-looking youngish lady who quietly started the class with an introduction to the topics they’d be learning about this year. Typical, white patriarchy bullshit, but that’s to be expected in History. Ginny managed to get through the entire lesson without saying a single word. </p><p>She had pages and pages of notes and a new idea about an essay describing the bravery and importance of the women of influence during the American Revolution. Okay, it was an essay about the Schuyler sisters, mostly based on what she learned from Hamilton, but still. They were important. </p><p>She lingered at the back of class, slowly packing her bags and thanking the teacher for not embarrassingly introducing her to the whole class. Hopefully, that left enough time for Maxine to find her friends and forget all about the weird new girl.</p><p>But when did Ginny’s hopes and dreams ever come to fruition? Never. The answer is never. Waiting patiently outside the classroom, Maxine’s sexy mischievous smile told Ginny that she knew exactly what she had planned but that she was never going to let her get away with it. Maxine grabbed her hand and started walking through the corridors.</p><p>“Come meet my friends, they’re going to love you!” she squealed as she twirled and skipped down the corridors, hand still firmly within Ginny’s. Ginny was being dragged along by this larger-than-life character and was praying that Maxine didn’t notice how sweaty her hands were. She had heard stories, before, about extroverts adopting introverts into their lives, but she never thought this would happen to her. Not only had she caught the attention of this beautiful, popular, friendly girl, but she was also now apparently to be adopted by her friends as well? </p><p>Her likely big, white, popular group of friends who wouldn’t take kindly to being infiltrated by uneducated ghetto trash. </p><p>Ginny needed to escape and she needed to do it now, but she was so distracted by the feeling of Maxine’s soft hand on hers. She didn’t really want to let go. She felt powerful to be walking alongside this steam train of positivity who had chosen to give Ginny her attention. Ginny had never wanted anyone’s attention before, but with Maxine, it was like she wanted to look deep into your soul and bring out all the very best parts so everyone could see them. Ginny wanted to share her best parts with Maxine; she just worried she didn’t have any for her to find.</p><p>Out of nowhere, Maxine started quick fire questioning, asking where she was from, her favourite foods, her favourite colour. It was fun to answer with the first thing that popped into her head, until an unexpected and dreaded question popped out of Maxine’s mouth:</p><p>“So, are you straight?” The question was innocent enough, and probably would have been easy to answer a day ago. Time seemed to freeze for Ginny, though.  <em> Am I straight? Fancying other girls is definitely not straight, but I’ve never fancied any girl other than Maxine. If I have to elaborate, she might ask me if I’ve had girlfriends and I don’t want to lie! Panic started to set in.  </em> What if Maxine was a homophobe? She didn’t seem the type, but people have all kinds of prejudices that you wouldn’t expect.</p><p>“What?” she blurted out, trying to buy herself more time. While Maxine elaborated on what she meant, rambling about all the different sexualities, Ginny muttered a soft “I don’t know”, which seemed to go unnoticed by Maxine.</p><p>She let out a huge sigh and whined “Ugh, there are no good gays in this town”. </p><p>Wait. Was Maxine gay? Before Ginny had time to process this thought, they were in the lunch room headed to a table of - yep, white, popular people having a great time. Was it too much to hope that Maxine would have been the token white girl in a group of popular black kids? Obviously, it was. </p><p>After being introduced to the group my Maxine, Ginny curled in on herself and picked at her food. She couldn’t help it. Even though she felt like an Amazon warrior when she was alone with Maxine, her friends made her feel small and unimportant. She wanted to hide and get back to Operation Invisible. Perhaps if Maxine’s friends decided they didn’t like her, then Maxine would give up on her and leave her alone. </p><p>Her thoughts were interrupted when Maxine seemed to notice that she hadn’t said anything or eaten any of her food. She started with more quickfire questions again, but then went on an adorable tangent about southern accents. Her impression was terrible and she should have been ashamed, but she was just so confident and happy about it. You couldn’t help but laugh with her. Even when she said ignorant, possibly even offensive, things, it just seemed too lovable and well-meaning to annoy Ginny. She really had it bad.</p><p>When Maxine suggested they skip their afternoon classes to sneak off campus and get some lunch, Ginny was sorely tempted to take her up on the offer. Extra one-on-one time with this gorgeous ball of fun? Yes please! But her mama didn’t raise no fool. Ginny was not a pretty, rich, white girl who could cut classes on the first day of school without consequences. Ginny was from a family of struggles, and she knew how much it meant to her mom for her to get an education so she wouldn’t have to struggle the same way. </p><p>Not to mention, the whole “you’re black, we expect you to cut class and fail” mentality that was clearly persistent in this neighbourhood. She wasn’t going to be proving any of those assholes right. Maxine did, however, insist that if they weren’t going to skip class, then they had to go early so they could get seats together. She had spent the entire lunch time talking to Ginny and ignoring her friends, and now she wanted to make sure they could sit together in classes. If Ginny wasn’t mistaken, and she desperately hoped she wasn’t, it was possible that Maxine might like her too.</p><p>AP Biology was a disaster. She was sitting next to Maxine the entire time and she was hyper aware of every move that she made. It was like the girl just oozed sexuality without meaning to. The way her eyes met with Ginny’s whenever the teacher mentioned reproduction was positively obscene. She did this thing where she looked up and down Ginny’s entire body in a way that made her feel naked and exposed, right there in front of the entire class. It was so quick, though, it seemed to be unintentional, like she didn’t even notice she was doing it. </p><p>Ginny was sweating in places she didn’t even know could sweat by the end of the lesson. Between the intimate looks, and the accidental brushes against her leg, she was absolutely ready to get out of school and collapse onto her bed. How did other people cope with these feelings? She felt like a dog in heat!</p><p> When the lesson finally finished, Ginny let out a sigh of relief, packed her bag in record time, and rushed to her locker. She couldn’t bear to look Maxine in the eye after her embarrassing reactions to such innocent, friendly touches. Ginny had never felt this way in her life and she would be damned if she went to bed tonight without getting every single bit of information about puberty and hormones from her momma. That sex talk about men wanting power and passion mentioned nothing about how overwhelming all these feelings could be. How does a person control themselves when they feel this way?</p><p>For what felt like the millionth time today, her thoughts were interrupted by one of those god-awful twins. Luckily, it was the friendly one who knew nothing about Ginny’s inner turmoil or her slightly voyeuristic tendencies. Unfortunately, it came with more innocent, friendly touches and a look of concern on her face. </p><p>“Everything alright? You disappeared pretty quickly after Biology finished. I’m so tired, I can’t wait to get home…” Ginny couldn’t stop staring at her mouth as she complained about the workload this year and their new teachers. She wanted to slap herself so she could focus on the words coming out of her mouth, but when she finally did start to focus, she wished she hadn’t.</p><p>They had made it outside to the parking lot when Maxine started walking slowly with a coy look on her face. “So… I noticed Hunter checking you out at lunch time! It was super cute. What do you think?”</p><p>Ginny’s stomach plummeted. She knew it was dramatic, and she knew it was probably just Maxine’s way of being friendly; but she had been spending all day having this existentialist crisis because of this walking orgasm, and now she was asking about setting Ginny up with one of her friends? Ginny had thought she would have wanted to spend more time together, not send her off to spend time with Hunter. Who even was Hunter? She hoped it wasn’t the scary looking one with a bad attitude and murder in his eyes. She did not want to be anywhere near him if she could help it. </p><p>“I didn’t really notice. There was a lot going on,” she replied, but Maxine had already started talking about how cute they would be as a couple and how great Hunter would be as a boyfriend. <em>  'If you like him so much, then you should date him'  </em> she couldn’t help but viciously thinking. That wasn’t fair though. Maxine was just trying to be friendly and she didn’t know the fresh hell that Ginny was enduring because of her… libido.</p><p>“Come on, let’s get out of here. I’ll give you a ride home,” she declared at the end of her Hunter monologue. Ginny was pretty quiet at the start of the car ride, but her mood couldn’t last long when she was with Maxine. Her bubbly energy just didn’t allow you to be upset in her presence. She sang along to every song and Ginny couldn’t help but stare in awe when she heard how beautiful her singing voice was. She didn’t realise she had verbalised her thoughts until Maxine looked at her, smiled, and said, “Awww, thanks hun. I have auditions for the school production of ‘Sing, Sing!’ tomorrow so I should really be resting my voice but I can’t help it! I love singing!”</p><p>By this time, they had arrived at Maxine’s house, but Ginny didn’t want to go home. She didn’t want to break the spell of being in her presence and feeling like the only important person in the world. She almost grinned with relief when Maxine decided, “We need to get started on our AP Biology homework, and we might as well do it together in my room! What do you say?”.</p>
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<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Kill me, now.</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Studying after school</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <h1> Kill me, now. </h1><p>Ginny had never had a study partner before. She had never been to a place where it wasn’t seen as shameful or uncool to work hard and study. Despite her chatty, friendly nature, Maxine was an excellent study buddy. They worked quietly together, their silence only interrupted when one of them was stuck on a question. After an hour, Maxine stood up and stretched, declaring that she needed some sugar to function. Ginny couldn’t help but let her eyes travel up and down her body, appreciating the view of Maxine’s stomach that appeared as she stretched.  <em> Down girl. What is with you and these twins’ stomachs? </em> </p><p>When Maxine left the room, Ginny took some time to mentally catalogue her day. She couldn’t believe this was only her first day of school. She had utterly failed to go unnoticed by her peers, which is something that had never happened before. She blew up at a teacher over some pretty unimportant, and possibly not even racist, remarks. She spent all day being distracted by insane hormones and feeling turned on by two ridiculously good looking people, who happened to be twins. She was now in Maxine’s house, and that meant--</p><p>Before she could even finish that thought, the evil twin appeared, just in time to make her regret every decision that had led to this moment. Here she was, in his house, alone; probably seeming like the most terrifying stalker known to man.</p><p>“Are you stalking me, neighbour?” </p><p>And of course, that was the first thing he decided to comment on. To be fair, it did look pretty suspicious. Only yesterday, she had been watching him changing from outside his bedroom window, and now here she is, alone in his house, unexpectedly. Were the situation reversed, Ginny probably would have thought the exact same thing. </p><p>“What? No. Maxine invited me” was her eloquent reply. </p><p>In a predatory, almost challenging way, he started walking towards her.  <em> Oh shit. Here it comes. He’s going to threaten to out me to the world, and let Maxine know what a pervy little stalker I am. He probably knows I was perving on her as well earlier. This is bad.  </em> </p><p>Ginny’s thoughts were all over the place as he stalked towards her. His stare pinned her to where she was sitting and he looked intently at her while moving closer. He kneeled down and leant in close to her, and she started to feel a throbbing pressure in her ladybits.  <em> Because, of course, a menacing stranger walking up to you in a predatory way is exactly what should excite a girl like me.  </em> She couldn’t help it though. </p><p>Her heart rate went through the roof and the only thing she could think of in this moment was what it would be like if he grabbed her and pinned her down while thoroughly examining her tonsils with his tongue. <em>  He could crawl on top of me and just keep grinding and grinding until we were both satisfied. It would be so quick, no one would even notice. Just to take the edge off. </em>  With these thoughts running through her mind, Ginny noticed he was moving even closer to her, in the perfect position to do exactly what he was imagining.</p><p> She looked at his lips. Soft and full and pink,  <em> just like Maxine’s. </em>  Shocked by that thought, she looked up at his eyes and noticed he was also looking at her lips.  <em> I’m going to have my first kiss with a boy who doesn’t even know my name and it is probably also going to give me my first orgasm. I am so on edge, right now.  </em> He reached behind her, finally in the perfect position to begin their passionate romantic embrace when--</p><p>He pulled a bag of weed from his hiding space behind her. It took her a while to realise what had happened, what with her mind ready to be ravaged and her eyes on the cusp of closing in preparation for her first kiss. But of course he wasn’t interested in kissing her. He wanted his weed and she was in his way. Ginny started to realise how hot her face was; she must have been completely red all over. He started to smile, clearly knowing exactly what had been going on in her mind; how pathetic she was for hoping he would want to kiss his little stalker and lead her on some more. </p><p> It was probably a good idea for him to avoid doing that, but he also could have asked her to move so he could get his weed. Thoroughly mortified and ready to go home and call it a day, Ginny had completely forgotten the reason she was in this boy’s house in the first place.</p><p>Walking into a scene that probably looked as dodgy as Ginny was feeling, Maxine (her eternal saviour) broke the tension with a snappy “Marcus, what are you doing?”</p><p>When she saw Marcus holding a bag of weed in his hand, she seemed resigned and annoyed at the same time. “Why is that in my room?” she sighed. She knew exactly why it was in her room. Their parents were having a tough time getting through to Marcus, and instead of talking to them or sorting out his shit, her infernal twin decided to try to be sneakier about hiding his little drug problem. She knew he was going through a lot, and she knew she had no idea what he must be feeling, but she was starting to get fed up with his attitude. He was clearly going down some dark path into some straight up evil and Maxine wanted nothing to do with it. She loved her brother, but he needed to sort his life out before he ruined it. He’d never listen to her though. He didn’t care about anyone or anything anymore, but he was not going to ruin her new friendship with Ginny. </p><p>“Just get out of here, please. We’re trying to study” was all she said. It’s all she could say. She didn’t want to get into this fight with him again, especially not in front of her new bestie. She’d save that shit show for slightly later in their friendship. </p><p>Ginny, completely oblivious to Maxine’s inner turmoil, couldn’t take her eyes off this mysterious enigma that had waltzed into her life. His intense gaze was still focused on her even though he was talking to his sister. It was like there was no one else in the room between them, even though he was clearly carrying out a conversation with someone else. How did these twins both manage to make you feel like the only person who ever existed? Ginny needed to get out of here before she did something stupid. Like jump Maxine because Marcus had got her so close to the edge of something she couldn’t even describe. Probably an orgasm; she needed to read more about those. That would be difficult to explain.</p><p>After that awkward encounter, there was some tension in the air. They finished up their Biology homework pretty quickly and chatted a bit, but Ginny was ready to go. She had hit her social quota for the day and was ready to curl up under the covers until tomorrow. Maybe she could watch a movie with Austin and just cuddle until they both fell asleep. That sounded perfect. She couldn’t wait until he was old enough for her to confide to. He thought in such a different way, she was sure he would give the best advice. </p><p>Ginny had made it all the way through the house without running into Marcus again. She was just starting to believe that her luck had finally changed when she made it to the driveway. <em>  Of course. He has a motorcycle, just like my dad.  </em> She remembered Maxine mentioning this, now. Having decided to simply smile at him as she walked past to avoid any unnecessary social interaction, he decided to holler out “So, what’s your favourite song by Wednesday?” as if he just couldn’t control his impulse to make her as uncomfortable as possible. </p><p>Now, in Ginny’s defence, she had had an unprecedentedly stressful day. She had reached her limit of pleasantries and social interaction after being at school for barely an hour, but she had persisted. She spent all day with a friendly extrovert who couldn’t give her a moment of calm. Not to mention, these awful new feelings she had never experienced before. For two. Different. People. Who happen to be related by blood. She had kept her calm when he teased and made her uncomfortable all day, and even let it slip when he made her feel special for a moment only to demonstrate how little he cared for her and how much he cared for weed. But to antagonise her when she was so close to her safe space at home? When she had already endured so much? She was fucking done.</p><p>She marched up to him with the same predatory, intense gaze that he gave her, and then looked at his bike. In her most patronizingly sweet voice, she exclaimed “Aw, nice bike!” as though he were a 4-year-old showing her his brand new dinosaur toy. When he stepped away from it muttering about girls and instagram, she put on the helmet, put the bike into gear and got ready to set off. </p><p> She had only intended to go for a little ride on it, but once she got the bike going at a decent speed, she felt so exhilarated. She didn’t want to stop. She wanted to go faster and faster and faster until nothing mattered anymore and she was far away from all the pressure and responsibilities and  <em> people.  </em> Being on a bike reminded her of the safety of being with her dad, who never judged her and always supported her unconditionally. </p><p> But it also reminded her that he was a dick because he should support her in person every day instead of from a distance. Realising that she had just essentially stolen someone’s bike, she started making her way back home ready to apologise.</p><p>When she pulled the bike to a stop, she saw how worried Marcus looked - over the bike or over her? She couldn’t tell. She was ready to apologise and explain that being on a bike reminded her of her dad, when he started yelling about how uncool that was. As if she hadn’t realised it during her head-clearing bike ride. She got a good look at him while he was ranting and raving, and she realised that he was actually pretty adorable. He and Maxine ranted in the same way, but you’d never know it because he always pretended to be so cool and collected. </p><p>  Before she knew it, Ginny had grabbed his face and kissed him. Her first kiss! This wasn’t how she thought it would be, grabbing some poor unsuspecting boy and forcing it on him. But since she had already started it, she might as well get into it. She didn’t know how long the kiss lasted, but before she could start grinding on him to really satisfy that feeling that had been growing all day, he pulled away. </p><p>He almost pushed her back, as though he was disgusted by what they had just done. And then reality set back in.  </p><p> She had just had a mental break, stolen this boy’s bike, and assaulted him when he expressed his concern over her actions. She kissed him because he reminded her of his sister who she had been trying not to hump all day.  </p><p> She stepped back, trying to think of a way out of this horrifying shit show when the day took a decidedly worse turn. A car pulled up, and a beautiful Indian goddess called out for Marcus to “hurry up and get in!” because of course, he has a girlfriend, and of course she has a car and is the Empress of Planet Babe. As a cherry on top of this awful day, Ginny got to overhear a quick, insulting conversation that went a little like this:</p><p>Beautiful girlfriend in the car: Who’s that?<br/>
Marcus the asshole (who still probably doesn’t know Ginny’s name): Dunno, one of Maxine’s dumb friends.</p><p>Welcome to Wellsbury, Ginny Miller. Your life is going to be hell.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Mother knows best</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>A long-awaited talk</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>When Ginny made it home, she closed the door behind her and leaned against it as if there were hell hounds on the other side. She was exhausted and, she wasn’t ashamed to admit, she needed her mommy.</p>
<p>“MOM!!” she hollered at the top of her lungs. She slid onto the floor so she was now crouching in a pile in front of the door.</p>
<p>When Georgia came down the stairs to see this pathetic sight, she felt at once concerned and relieved. Her baby was home, though she wasn’t looking like she had had the best day. Georgia had seen her on that bike, with that awful Baker boy, and had initially been furious. All she could see in her mind was a beautiful, young Zion, charming the pants off of her with his motorcycle and getting her pregnant. There was no way history was going to repeat itself with her baby. Not if she could help it. She had been ready to storm over to Ginny and warn her about the dangers of sex and boys and motorcycles. </p>
<p>Seeing her in a pathetic heap at the front door though, she softened like butter on a hot day. Even though her teenage years were unbearable in a way she hoped Ginny would never understand, she still knew how difficult it was to be a teenager trying to find your way in the wild world. Her baby wasn’t the most social creature, and she knew how hard it was to have to be in a new situation at a new school all the time. Georgia walked down the stairs and sat next to Ginny on the floor. </p>
<p>“How was your day, sweetie?” she asked as she put her arm around her little one. Before she could say anything else, Ginny let out a loud wail and burst into tears, covering her face with her hands. Georgia had known that there was something wrong, but she didn’t realise how bad the situation must be until that moment. Ginny never lost control of her emotions, claiming that she didn’t want to step into the role of a pathetic damsel in distress, serving only to make the patriarchy feel that much bigger and stronger. Georgia didn’t understand it, feelings were feelings after all, but Ginny had always been tough in a way that she was not. Seeing her break down after two minutes of being at home was a real shock. She must have been holding it in all day if she couldn’t even wait until she got up to the privacy of her own bedroom. This called for emergency back up. Calling Austin downstairs, because he always seemed to know how to make Ginny feel calmer, Georgia got to work getting every fattening, sweet confection she could find and ordering even more to be delivered to the house.</p>
<p>When she sat on the sofa next to Ginny and Austin with a tub of ice cream for each of them, she gave her daughter some time to process her thoughts and feel the soothing effect of that sweet, creamy treat on her tongue. Austin, as usual, was effortlessly cheering his sister up. He was lying with his head on her lap, making funny faces at her while she tried to eat her ice cream with a straight face. Even with tears silently streaming down her face, Ginny looked like she was finally at peace now that she was with her family. At times like these, Georgia wouldn’t trade a single thing for the family she had created here, even if it could remove all the horrors from her past. Her heart was so full, she didn’t want to ruin it by bringing up whatever had upset her oldest child. She knew, though, that Ginny should never be left to stew in her feelings. She had her suspicions about her daughter’s methods for coping with the stress and trauma in her life, but she trusted that Ginny would come to her for help if she needed it.</p>
<p>“Peach, what happened today? I’ve never seen you so upset after one day at school,” she whispered gently.</p>
<p>Ginny looked up at her mother, then down at her brother who was still making silly faces. She poked him in the cheek, then in the tummy, tickling him until he moved off of her lap and instead rested is head on her shoulder, and let out a big sigh. </p>
<p>“I feel better after crying. It’s just been an unprecedentedly horrible day. I don’t even know where to start, mom” she intoned after thinking for a moment.</p>
<p>“Well, if you need us to pack up and start over again, sweetie, you just say the word. I’m not gonna stay in a town that makes my baby miserable just because I’ve got a mortgage. We can be in New York by morning and start a new life in the big city, what do you say?” Georgia was clearly trying to lighten the mood and cheer up her daughter, but it seemed to be the wrong thing to say. Ginny looked at her in horror at the thought of having to pack everything again so soon and Austin jumped up and dramatically shouted “Noooo!” in slow motion, falling to the floor as if he were dying.</p>
<p>After a few moments, they all looked at each other and burst out into laughter. “Maybe not, then. I got you to laugh though, so things can’t be all that bad! Now come here and tell your momma what’s got you so upset.”</p>
<p>And Ginny did. She told her every thought and interaction she had had since moving to this weird new town. She explained her worries about racism and never fitting in, and went on to describe, in great detail, all the horrifying new feelings she was having. She would have worried that Austin was too young to hear about her sexual awakening, but she knew that he needed to be prepared for the absolute horrors of puberty. When she finally explained how exhilarated she felt when riding the motorcycle and how mortified she felt after kissing someone who had a girlfriend, there was a deafening silence in the room while everyone attempted to absorb the uniquely dire situation in which Ginny had found herself. </p>
<p>Austin, as ever, knew exactly what to say in this situation. “Aww, you promised I would be able to ride the motorcycle next! You took my turn!” he complained dramatically from the floor. “You have to take me on any motorcycle you ever ride on from here on out. Swear it!” he exclaimed, holding his pinky finger out to his sister.</p>
<p>Ginny chuckled, lacing their pinkies together and promising “I swear, I will not get on another motorcycle without you. Now, go upstairs and brush your teeth and get ready for bed. Mom needs to give me advice about my terrible life and I have a feeling we will be here for a long time”.</p>
<p>She was right. She and her mom talked for hours about the racist incidents she had noticed which didn’t manage to catch Georgia’s attention. They talked about Mr. Baldhead and decided they would keep an eye on that situation to feel out whether or not he was racist, or just a stressed-out but well meaning teacher. When it was time to talk about all the feelings Ginny had been fighting all day, she started to get nervous. Ginny knew her mother was sex positive and always supported her daughter, but she also knew that homophobia was rampant in the south, where Georgia grew up. She had never worried about that before, but these confusing feelings about Maxine and Marcus were something she needed help with. She needed to know if her mother had a problem with the feelings she had. Georgia’s answer, as always, completely surprised Ginny with its unexpected gaiety. </p>
<p>“Well, she sounds like she’s nothin’ like her brother, and at least you know she can’t get you pregnant! I say we avoid Marcus like the plague and get to know Maxine a little better. Don’t worry about her trying to set you up with Hunter sweetie, we’ll figure all that out later. The important question is: how do you feel when you’re with her?” She looked expectantly at Ginny. Ginny hesitated, unsure of what her mother wanted her to say.</p>
<p>“Do you mean, like… down there?” she asked, pointing towards her crotch. “Because it’s difficult to explain but it’s kind of like a throbbing pressure that makes me want to rub--”</p>
<p>“No, sweetie! I know what it feels like to be horny, trust me. We’ll get you a vibrator too, let’s add that to the to-do list. Aside from the horniness though, how do you feel as a person when you’re with her?” She clarified, happy that she could talk so openly and honestly with her teenage daughter.</p>
<p>Ginny had a soft smile on her face and a far away look in her eyes as she thought about her day with Maxine. “Like I’m a powerful warrior who can do anything. She grabs my hand, and I swear mom, I feel like Xena Warrior Princess, off to battle” she said sheepishly. There was a small blush forming on her cheeks and Georgia was delighted to see her girl finally acting like a carefree teenager. </p>
<p>“Well then, I don’t think you need my advice, sweetie. Just be with the people who make you feel like you can do anything in the world, and avoid the people who make you feel small and you’ll be right as rain. Now, let’s go find you a nice clean vibrator to take that edge off. I got a new one the other day that just--”</p>
<p>Laughing, Ginny put her hands over her mother’s mouth to stop her from oversharing any masturbation tips. She had been though enough for today. They could have that talk tomorrow. The edge was well and truly gone now. She was just exhausted. Tomorrow was a new day, and she was going to stick to her mom’s advice. She’d spend some time with Maxine, avoid Maxine’s friends, ignore the existence of Marcus completely, and most of all: focus on her studies. She did, after all, have to prove to the world that black girls are, indeed, magic.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Chapter 6</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Following her mom’s advice was easier said than done. When the person who makes you feel like a warrior is a friendly extrovert, spending time with her inevitably means running into her gang of friends. Ginny just couldn’t shake the uncomfortable feeling around them, but she was getting used to the discomfort over time. They weren’t all that bad, either.  </p><p> Hunter Chen was one of the boys in their AP English class, so they could talk about literature if nothing else. The other girls in the group didn’t seem too friendly towards Ginny, but that was to be expected. She just kept quiet and did some reading whenever Maxine wanted to sit with them, and that helped to calm her. She could escape into her own little world without worrying about what the rest of them were doing.</p><p>That was until she looked up and saw Marcus and his gorgeous girlfriend making out across the corridor. She couldn’t help but stare at the way his hands held firmly onto her waist while her hands played in his hair. They both had their eyes closed, and it seemed like a passionate kiss. She was much taller than Ginny, so Marcus didn’t have to bend so far to kiss her. Not to mention the fact that this kiss looked completely consensual and he wasn’t pushing her away for grabbing onto him like some pathetic rapist. <em> God, did she sexually assault him?  </em> With that horrifying thought crossing her mind, Ginny focused her eyes only to realise that she was still gazing in the direction of the beautiful exhibitionists getting it on in the corridors, and was ready to look away quickly.  </p><p> Unfortunately for her, it seemed that her voyeuristic streak was caught, yet again, by Marcus Baker. When she met his eyes, she expected to see disgust, or for him to roll his eyes and stop his stunning makeout session with his stunning girlfriend, but instead, their kiss seemed to deepen and intensify when he was staring at her. He started grinding his girlfriend against the wall obscenely, as if he were ready to fuck her right there in front of everyone - but he was still maintaining eye contact with Ginny. </p><p>Her attention was grabbed by someone sitting next to her and looking at the cover of her book. “Pride and Prejudice, huh? That’s what you’ve chosen for your English essay, right?” It was Hunter Chen, the only friend of Maxine that she could stomach talking to. She smiled at him gratefully for distracting her from whatever the hell that was, and started talking about her plans for the English essay. This led them into such an interesting discussion about feminism in Austen’s work that she didn’t even remember to be embarrassed about peeping on Marcus and his girl.  </p><p> Maybe Maxine was right and Hunter wasn’t so bad. She could see why Max would want to set him up with a nice, new person. He seemed like the lovable, happy guy that you always want to root for in the movies, but who has all the sex appeal of a Teletubby. Nonetheless, it was nice to know that she could get on with at least one of Maxine’s friends. And he didn’t make her feel exhausted when she was in his presence, like she did when she spent time with Maxine. He had a calming, simple presence. It was easy to ignore him or forget his existence when he was out of sight, but Maxine was undeniable.  </p><p> Being in her presence was like being next to the sun, and Ginny just wanted to soak up all her warmth. Whenever she was in the room, it was impossible not to notice her every move; the way the person she was talking to instantly lights up and feels better because her attention is on them. After a while, that kind of focused attention can feel like it’s too much though, and Ginny found that she needed more alone time than ever after spending time with Maxine. She had AP Chemistry with Hunter and Maxine, so they walked to class as a happy little trio. They got there early enough that they could all sit together, and Ginny started to feel like she had finally found somewhere she belonged. Not only had she found a close friend, possible soulmate, in Maxine, but she was also enjoying how Hunter’s calming presence balanced her out. </p><p>Feeling lighter and happier at the end of the day, she couldn’t wait to tell her mom about how good her advice was. She had made two new friends in two days. An incredible record for her, if she did say so herself. She felt like a little kid again, she was practically bouncing with glee! When they got to the car park, they slowed down, waiting to say their goodbyes. Maxine was talking about someone stuffing their hands down their pants while Hunter and I shared a good natured eye roll at her antics, when she abruptly stopped talking and pretended to hear her name being called somewhere else.  </p><p> Behind Hunter, Ginny’s attention was brought to a tall, gorgeous couple making out against yet another wall.  <em> Seriously? Is no one else seeing this soft porn show happening outside a school?  </em> She wondered, and realised that Hunter had been talking the entire time. He was looking at her expectantly, and she had to ask him to repeat what he had said.</p><p>“I said, we should hang out today, if you’re free. What do you say?” He looked sweet and hopeful, and she guessed it would be cool to hang out with him and Max, although she had been hoping to get some alone time with Maxine away from all her admirers and friends. That girl was always wanted by someone. </p><p>Smiling, she replied, “Yeah, that sounds great. I’ll go get Max and we can all drive over together!” but it seemed like that had been the wrong thing to say. Confused, Ginny waited for him to explain what was wrong. Hunter started shifting uneasily from foot to foot and rubbing the back of his neck.</p><p>“Well, see. I was thinking this would just be the two of us, without Maxine. Like a date.” </p><p>Shock. Horror. Their friendship crumbling before her eyes. All she could do was blurt out, “A date?!” but apparently it had been much louder than she anticipated because she could see she had drawn the attention of a nearby group and- was that Maxine smiling and giving a thumbs up?</p><p>Ugh, of course. She still wanted to set up Hunter with the new girl. Nevermind the fact that the new girl was already half in love with you, Maxine. Fine, she would go on one date to make Max happy, and then she could explain that she has feelings for someone else and she wants to remain close friends with Hunter and Max. Or something. Georgia will know what to do.  <em> God, having two friends is exhausting.  </em> </p><p>So, with a deep breath, Ginny smiled and agreed to go on a date with Hunter. From his relieved sigh and the way Maxine ran up to her hugging her and gushing about finding something to wear, you’d think she had just agreed to marry the guy. But Ginny took one look at the bubbly excitement on Max’s face and she couldn’t help but feel excited too. They were going to spend time getting ready for the date together! Could she convince Max to try on some outfits too? <em>  Jesus, girl, stop with the horny teenager act. Maybe I need to talk to Georgia about one of those vibrators sooner rather than later. </em> </p><p>And with that thought in mind, she set off to get ready for her date with Maxine, completely unaware of the pair of intense eyes following her every step as she listened to her new best friend gush about fashion and dates.</p>
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<a name="section0007"><h2>7. Chapter 7</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>As they pulled up to her driveway, Ginny noticed that her mom was in the front garden tending to some flowers in a cute summer dress. She wished she could pull off clothes like her mom did - effortlessly, elegantly, with a hint of sultriness. But Ginny knew she just looked like a frizzy-haired boy in a dress when she tried on her mom’s clothes. She couldn’t wait for her mom’s genes to finally make themselves present on her chest. </p><p>“God, your mom is so banging,” she heard Max sigh as she exited the car. </p><p>She didn’t know if she should be feeling a stabbing pain in her chest just because someone else noticed how beautiful her mom was; but she hated it. She hated being compared to the absolutely gorgeous specimen that was her mother. Even without her frizzy hair, flat chest, and freckles, there was just something about the way that Georgia carried herself that could not be emulated by anyone else. Even if she raised you herself. It’s more than just her looks, it’s her confidence as well. If that’s something Maxine was interested in, there’s no way Ginny stood a chance. Suddenly feeling a lot more glum in her outlook on life, Ginny quietly greeted her mum and introduced her to Maxine, hoping that her mom wasn’t about to embarrass her further.</p><p>“Oh, so this is the famous Maxine! I feel like you’re already part of the family, the way Ginny talks about you. Thank you so much for making my baby feel so welcome around here” she gushed as she gave her daughter a hug and a kiss on the forehead. Ginny could never stay mad at her mom, it wasn’t her fault she’s a walking sex doll with a fantastic personality. She just wished people wouldn’t compare them, because she knew they’d always find her lacking. </p><p>While Maxine started gushing about loving Southern accents and getting her ready for a date, Ginny observed them interacting. There were some disturbing similarities in the way that her crush and her mom behaved, which started to make her worry about Oedipus complex and whether that could apply to a lesbian relationship. Not that they were in a relationship, because Maxine probably just thought of her as a cute new puppy, but one could dream.  </p><p> Seeing them both so excited about her ‘date’ with Hunter made her forget all her worries and start to get a bit excited too. They were already discussing which hair styles and outfits would enhance Ginny’s best features when they started heading inside.  </p><p> Getting ready for the date was just as fun as she thought it would be. They were all laughing and trying on different outfits, getting to know more about Maxine. Georgia was clearly trying to subtly drop some hints about how big an impact Maxine had already had on Ginny’s life, but Ginny couldn’t blame her for trying to make her daughter happy. Luckily, she didn’t think Max had noticed. When they had all finished getting ready to go out (apparently Georgia had a PTA meeting already?), Georgia pulled Ginny aside for a whispered conversation.</p><p>“She’s gorgeous, honey. I can see why you’re so smitten. Don’t think I didn’t catch you looking at her while she was changin, either. Momma sees all, sweetie. I got you a little present and left it on your bed. There are plenty of spare batteries, so knock yourself out after your little ‘date’” she whispered conspiratorially with a wink.  </p><p> Ginny groaned and hid her face, but she was secretly ecstatic that her mom had read her mind. She really, really needed to try something to take the edge off after the past few days. She couldn’t wait to get this date over with so she could experiment with her new toy. She took a moment to appreciate how lucky she was to have such a modern, sex positive mom. Imagining with horror what it would be like to have parents who shamed their kids for wanting to explore their sexuality, she smiled and set off for her date. Hunter was waiting in his car outside her house and she could see Max jumping up and down in excitement across the road. <em> 'God, I love that girl'. </em> She thought to herself, and then got into the car, ready to spend some time getting to know her new friend. </p><p>The date was great. She and Hunter swapped hilarious, embarrassing stories from their childhoods and Hunter told her all about his ex-girlfriend Sarah? Sam? Something beginning with S. He sounded like he would have been a cute boyfriend, if a little over the top.  </p><p> They had friendly banter the entire time and she was really glad to be able to spend one on one time getting to know him. Hunter had some real ambitions and worked really hard. She had a feeling he would be a fantastic addition to her little study group. Conversation flowed easily, and there was clearly a friendly vibe for the entire date.  </p><p> When he dropped her home and hugged her goodbye, she felt at peace. She held onto him tightly and thanked him for taking her out on her first date, and the embarrassing weirdo dropped down onto one knee and kissed the back of her hand like some old timey gentleman. Ginny laughed out loud and sent him home, blowing a kiss his way. She couldn’t wait to tell Maxine all about the date, and about her new idea for a study group.  </p><p> Instead, she went inside and settled for telling Austin all about the date. His incredible advice? “You should go on dates with all your friends so you get to have fun with them one by one!” Ginny thought about how that could work and whether she could convince Maxine to go on a romantic date, then left Austin to get ready for bed. She warned him that she had a new toy to try out and that he should wear his headphones. He shooed her out of his room. They probably had a strange family dynamic but Ginny didn’t care. She loved her brother and she loved her parents.</p>
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<a name="section0008"><h2>8. Chapter 8</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>This chapter is going to include a consensual sex scene between two people who I imagine to be 18 years old. If it squicks you out, skip this chapter, as it will be mostly smut and not a lot of plot.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Ginny locked her bedroom door and went straight for the package on her bed. It was huge and pink and had no instructions, other than how to put the batteries in. How was she supposed to use this thing?! She clicked the ‘On’ button and it started vibrating like crazy. She touched one end with her index finger and felt the smooth vibration ringing through her hand.  </p><p> Oh, yes. She didn’t need any instructions to know where this would feel best. She dived under the covers of her bed and started preparing to finally, FINALLY relieve some of this tension. She closed her eyes and started moving Little Sunshine (her newly named vibrator) down her body. She was only going to turn it on once it got to the place she really wanted it to be. The anticipation was killing her, but she had been battling these feelings for days. She could draw out her pleasure just a little bit longer.  </p><p> Just as she was about to begin teasingly moving Little Sunshine closer to her clit, she heard a noise at her window and jumped up as if she had been burned. She wasn’t doing anything wrong! It was perfectly natural to explore her own sexuality and she didn’t need to be so goddamned jumpy at every little noise. She glared at the window, cursing it for interrupting her nightly plans, when she noticed that there was a face outside her window in the dark, preparing to climb in. She screamed and ran for her hairbrush, remembering the Ted Bundy series she had watched with her mom last month, only to turn around and be confronted by… Marcus Baker?</p><p>Clearly, the confusion and terror wasn’t showing on her face, because he walked into her room, as casual as you please, looking around and touching her things. When he picked up a figurine on her desk, she snapped back into reality, furious at the audacity this little shit was displaying.</p><p>“What are you doing in my room, you creep? You can’t just break into someone’s house at night time because you feel like it!” she yelled as she stormed up to him, ready to push him the fuck back out that window. </p><p>He seemed taken aback by her anger for a moment, but quickly collected himself, responding coolly “Do you like him? Hunter?”</p><p>He sounded almost accusatory and Ginny had to really think for a moment to comprehend the absolute audacity of this guy.  <em> Did he really just break into my room, at night, uninvited, to jealously ask me about spending time with my friend?  </em> Suddenly, Ginny’s previously embarrassing behaviour towards him didn’t seem so bad.</p><p>Emboldened by her shocked silence, the broody Baker twin continued moving forward and repeated his question, “Do you like him?”</p><p>Ginny quickly glanced towards her bed to make sure Little Sunshine wasn’t in view and decided to see where this conversation was going. “Yeah, he’s great. I really enjoyed spending some time getting to know him today.” she said with a smile, curious about his seemingly annoyed reaction. This was starting to annoy her, too. She had business to attend to.</p><p>He sat down on her desk, looking at once more comfortable and more tense. His jaw was clenched and he had a look in his squinted eyes which suggested that he wasn’t happy at all. He crossed his arms, looking her in the eye intensely and said “OK, that’s that then” as if he were making some grand proclamation. </p><p>Perhaps it was because he had interrupted her new nightly routine, or perhaps it was because she had to watch him grind his hot girlfriend into a wall all day, but she was started to get seriously pissed off now.</p><p>“That’s what?” she exploded, “I’m just Maxine’s dumb friend, remember? And who climbs through a window, uninvited, to visit someone who isn’t their girlfriend?” He was looking intently at her lips while she was talking, like he did the other day when he teased her before grabbing his bag of weed, and that just spurred her on further. “You know, you can’t just creep into every girl’s room with your pretty Ted Bundy face, and expect to be able to--”</p><p>She couldn’t finish her sentence because he cut her off by crushing his lips to hers. His hands were cupping her jaw and he pulled her waist towards him as if he couldn’t bear to have any more distance between them. Ginny’s body was on fire and she wanted him to grind her against a wall like he did with his girl--</p><p>She pushed him away when that image popped into her mind. “Your girlfriend! I watched you doing this exact same thing to her all day, and now you come into my room trying it with me? What is wrong with you? Get out!” Ginny took a step back and wiped that kiss off her mouth. She was furious, but she was ready to have a very long night time session with her window firmly locked. Her entire body was tingling and she felt like she was ready to explode. </p><p>Marcus stepped back and started pacing, reminding her again of how Maxine looks when she’s excited about something. He heart softened a bit at the familiar reminder of his sister, but hardened again when she remembered the reason for his pacing. She crossed her arms expectantly.</p><p>“I’m sorry, I’m sorry.” He started. He stopped pacing and looked Ginny in the eye, his eyebrows furrowed with confusion and… pain? “I just know you were on that date today and Maxine won’t shut up about how perfect you and Hunter are. I felt like an idiot because I’ve been thinking about you constantly ever since you kissed me but if you’re not feeling the same way--”</p><p>Something inside her snapped and before she could fully think through her actions, her body launched itself at Marcus, crushing her lips to his yet again. This time, though, her conscience was suspiciously silent - drowned out by her body’s cries of ‘yes! Finally’ as Marcus walked her over to her bed, still attached at the lips, and gently lay her down horizontally. He broke their kiss for a moment, looking at her as if to ask for permission.   </p><p> <em> Really? Now?  </em> She thought as she grabbed his face and brought it back to hers. Her itch was finally getting scratched by the town playboy and she’d be damned if she let him back out of it now. He pressed their bodies closer together and started moving his hips in a way that -  <em> ‘God, yes, please, more of that’  </em> - felt incredible.  </p><p> He kept grinding against her until that feeling of warmth from earlier returned and felt like it was going to explode out of her. She closed her eyes and let out a long, low moan until the feeling stopped.  <em> That was amazing!  </em> She opened her eyes and saw Marcus staring at her as if nothing else in the world had ever existed. Ginny couldn’t handle the intensity of his stare so she looked away sheepishly, feeling a bit embarrassed about whatever the hell she had just done. </p><p>Marcus put his fingers on her chin and pointed her face back up to allow her to meet his eyes. “Don’t hide from me. You’re breath-taking” he whispered, before leaning in to kiss her gently this time. Within moments, the kiss deepened and the feeling was back, creating an urgent need running through her body. It was more intense than last time, and Ginny knew that she needed more. She wanted to chase that feeling until she exploded into a million little pieces.  </p><p> She broke the kiss and sat up, noticing a look of desperation and - was that hurt? - on Marcus’ face, but she couldn’t dwell on that for too long because she was too hot and needed to take off her clothes. She sighed in relief once her shirt was off then looked again at Marcus. The stunned look on his face was almost cute. He was acting like he’d never seen a pair of tits before. He reached out his hands, then stopped, as if he were afraid to touch without permission. Their eyes met, and Ginny nodded slightly, before drawing him back into a kiss. It was much better without her top, but she still needed more. 
</p><p>As if sensing her impatience, Marcus broke the kiss and started taking off his shirt and pants, leaving Ginny room to strip down and get under the covers. She felt something hard under her back and reached under to grab it, only to emerge with her bright pink vibrator held in front of her. She burst out laughing at the incredulous look on Marcus’ face. He raised his eyebrows questioningly.
</p><p>“I was ready to have a very good night before you came knocking on my window to interrupt me” she shrugged shamelessly. They were lying naked side-by-side now. It’s not like she really had anything else to hide from him. He shook his head and leaned in to kiss her, taking Little Sunshine out of her hand. She was about to tell him off for stealing her personal property when she felt it pushing insistently against her clit and start vibrating. 
</p><p>Pleasure. Her mind shut off and she could process nothing except for the amazing feeling at her core. When he began moving it in tiny circles around her clit, she started panting and almost let out a scream before clasping her hand over her mouth.  <em> Holy mother of god, </em>  she was going to wet herself. The most intense need to pee started building in her and she had to stop him before she did something truly mortifying. She shuddered as he moved the vibrator away from her and she let out another low groan.  <em> ‘No wonder girls are happy for him to climb up their windows. He can come back any time’  </em> she thought with a relaxed smile. She had never felt this boneless in her life.
</p><p>While she was smiling like a dopey idiot, he started grinning along before leaning in to kiss her. She felt first one, then two fingers enter her and couldn’t believe the embarrassing squelching sounds she was making. She had definitely never been this wet before in her life. She was starting to feel like she was going to come again when he stopped, causing her to let out a whine of displeasure. He smiled like he had won some secret prize and then looked at her expectantly.</p><p>“May I?” he asked, as she could feel something blunt and warm prodding her.  <em> She was going to lose her virginity to this guy! She knew it!  </em> But panic suddenly set in.</p><p>With wide eyes, she blurted “Wait! Do you know my name?!” remembering that she had never actually introduced herself and this was probably the absolute worst time to remember that she meant absolutely nothing to the person who had just had his fingers inside her.</p><p>He let out a dry chuckle, sighed, and kissed the top of her head. Looking into her eyes again, he said, slowly and clearly, “Yes, Ginny Miller. I know your name. Do you know mine?”
</p><p>Ginny let out a sigh of relief she didn’t realise she had been holding, then said “Yes, Marcus Baker. You can, um, continue now.”
</p><p>He sighed and muttered something that sounded suspiciously like “finally!” and pushed in in one smooth go.  </p><p> Fullness.  </p><p> Until today she had never had anything at all inside her, and now she had had fingers and what felt like a giant metal pole lodged inside her. He looked like he was ready to start moving, so Ginny put her hands on his shoulders to stop that disaster from unfolding.  </p><p> She didn’t know if she wanted him to pull out or stay still and never move again. While she contemplated the next instruction to give him, that feeling started building again, but deeper and more powerful this time. Without her permission, her mouth let out a long moan as she immersed herself in this feeling and she urged him to start moving. She didn’t know how else to describe what she needed, but he started doing something that felt good.  </p><p> The feeling that had been building suddenly stopped without warning, but he kept moving. It didn’t hurt or feel bad. She had just lost that feeling that usually ended with the explosion of relaxation. Poof, gone! At least he seemed to be enjoying himself. She looked up at him and noticed that he was muttering something under his breath. <em> Was he trying to remember her name? The little shit!  </em> Before she could think on that any further, he let out a loud moan and said her name one final time before collapsing on top of her. </p><p>Well.  </p><p> That had been anticlimactic. But it had been a pleasant experience overall. She was about to turn towards him to let him know that that sex was pretty pleasant considering it was her first time, when she noticed he was already getting out of bed and putting on his clothes. <em> Oh fuck no, he just leaves straight away after sex? Does that make all the other girls feel as cheap as I do right now? </em></p><p>Not wanting to come off as a clingy virgin (thanks, patriarchy), Ginny had the sudden urge to act really cool and unaffected. Then she remembered that this guy had climbed, uninvited, into her room and taken her virginity. Fuck the patriarchy.</p><p>“So, you just leave straight away after sex? That’s how you do it? Has no one ever told you that makes it feel really cheap?” She swore to god, if he responded something snarky about it being free or cheap, she was going to burn him with her hair straighteners. 
</p><p>Instead, he simply shrugged and started to tense, looking uncomfortable at being called out for his douchebaggery. So, clearly no one had ever had the gall to question his treatment of women before. Great. Just as Ginny was about to make the decision to just stop caring and be grateful for the free orgasms, he decided to open his mouth and ruin her good mood yet again. </p><p>At least he had the decency to look sheepish and guilty as he buttoned up his trousers, saying “Listen, can we keep this on the DL? I don’t want this getting back to Padma and--”</p><p>That was it. This cool girl bullshit was done. She sat up and angrily started reaching for something to throw at him. She picked up Little Sunshine but decided against it. She didn’t want to break her new best friend over this asshole. Instead, she just looked at him with all the fury she could conjure and growled in a low voice “Get. Out.” A Pillow! He was halfway out the window when she grabbed a pillow to throw at him. She missed, terribly, but it was the thought that counted. </p><p>She lie back in bed and started to laugh quietly. It kept building and building until she was lying in bed, laughing hysterically with tears streaming down her face. Georgia was probably going to kill her, but she needed to talk to her about it as soon as she got home. Why was she such a goddamned disaster?</p>
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<a name="section0009"><h2>9. Chapter 9</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Trigger warning: panic attack, suicidal ideation. Please skip this chapter if it will distress you to read about these themes.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>She had felt so free. So relaxed and boneless; safe, and important like nothing else in the world mattered. She tried to hold on to that feeling, remember the easy smile that appeared on her face involuntarily but all she could feel was that cheap embarrassment when it was over. How was that fair? She was a modern, sex positive woman! She could use the town tramp for a few orgasms, and she shouldn’t be embarrassed about it. She wasn’t the one climbing into other people’s rooms and giving them orgasms behind her girlfriend’s back. So why did she feel like she had done something horribly wrong?</p><p>She couldn’t get the image of his goofy grin as he leaned in to kiss her out of her mind. It brought a smile to her face even with the reminder of his sheepish expression while he asked her not to tell his girlfriend about it. He was bad bad bad and she needed to forget about him forever. <em> I mean, really. If that’s how he’s going to treat the girlfriend he’s probably known his whole life, how do you think he’s going to treat you? Convenient, easy, new girl, whose room he can climb into whenever he feels horny and doesn’t want to travel too far? </em> Yes, it was definitely a good idea to forget all about him.  </p><p> Why did her heart feel like it was breaking? She didn’t care for Marcus in the way she cared for Maxine! She had barely spoken two words to him, but she felt as if he could reach into her heart and rip it out of his chest if he wanted to. Yet, he didn’t care. At all. Maybe she was upset because she had just effectively thrown away her chance to be with Maxine romantically. Ginny couldn’t imagine anything more off-putting than hearing your best friend say “I had sex with your brother and have some feelings for him, but I’m way more in love with you. Wanna bang?” No, she would have to find a more delicate way to tell Maxine about tonight.</p><p>God, she had been feeling so excited to talk to Max after her date with Hunter. She had wanted to ask Maxine on a date! How could one 5-minute tryst ruin so much? The feeling of dread was settling in her stomach and she started to feel overwhelmed. She was trapped in a dark room on her own and there was no way out. No matter how much she touched the walls, there was no sign of any exit to this horror she was feeling.  </p><p> She was alone, trapped, no way out. No one would understand. Ginny didn’t even understand. It had all been going so well and she had just completely ruined it. She ruined everything she touched. Everyone would be so much better off if she just disappeared. No. Her thoughts were spiralling.  </p><p> She needed to mentally catalogue the day. No, she needed to call her mom. Yes. She picked up her phone and saw that she had a missed call from Maxine and a video message with Max jumping up and down with excitement, waiting to hear about her date. The dread eased a little and she choked out a laugh, despite her tears. She wasn’t even here, yet Maxine was making her feel better already. With her new resolve, she called her mom, hoping it wouldn’t go straight to voicemail. It rang once, twice, and then her mom picked up the phone sounding very merry. </p><p>Oh no, the PTA meeting. Mom must have managed to fix her problems, as she always did. She sounded so happy and proud, and now her stupid daughter was about to ruin her great night. Ginny couldn’t form any words and just let out a panicked sob, trying to take back the stupid decision to call her mom and ruin her day. Georgia missed nothing though, and went quickly to a much quieter room so she could talk to her daughter.</p><p>“Peach, what’s wrong honey? Is everything alright?” her voice sounded strange and far away. Ginny couldn’t quite concentrate on it. She just knew that she was ruining everything today and she didn’t want to burden her mother, who had done so much for her already, anymore.</p><p>“I’m so sorry, mom. I’ve been so stupid. I’ve ruined everything” she found herself spilling in between breaths. “Everyone would be so much better without me. I’m so sorry. Please. I’m sorry, I didn’t want to hurt anyone” she was rambling and wasn’t making any sense. It was so hard to make sense. And breathe. She was trapped in a dark room and she needed a light or a door or a hand or something. Anything.</p><p>“Sweetie, I am right here. Momma’s here, baby. I’m right here and I’m with you. Breathe for me. Can you breathe for me?” Her mom’s voice was so soothing but it felt so far away. Why was she so far away? Ginny could hear the end of a muffled conversation “-- to check on her please?” and in a louder voice, she heard her mom saying “Sweetie, I’m leaving right now. I’ll be home in twenty minutes but I want you to stay on the phone to me while you’re alone, alright? Where’s Austin, Peach? Is he ok?”</p><p>She didn’t want to make her mom worry. She was just feeling too much and didn’t know what to do. “No! Please, mom. Don’t leave your event. You sounded so happy! I don’t want to ruin it, I’m fine, I promise! Please. Austin is sleeping. I was just being stupid, I’m fine.” It probably would have been more convincing if she weren’t panting and sniffling every other word, but Ginny wasn’t exactly thinking straight. </p><p>She put down the phone and went to wash her face with cold water. She filled the sink and dipped her entire face into the water, holding her head under until she was desperate from breath. She raised her head and breathed in a lungful of air. That was good. She took some more deep breaths and looked at the pathetic face staring back at her from the mirror. She looked awful. She dried her face and then went back to her room.  </p><p> She had forgotten about her phone.  </p><p> Oops.  </p><p> The call had ended. She had probably ruined her mom’s night and she was probably rushing back home to look after he fucked up daughter now, instead of basking in her well-deserved success. Her mom was so strong and had been through so much, and here she was crying because some boy doesn’t like her. Come on, Ginny. Have some perspective. You have a home, you have your family. If these new friends you’ve made decide they don’t want to be your friend anymore because of a few measly orgasms, then that’s fine. You wanted to be alone from the beginning, remember? It’s better this way.</p><p>She took a deep breath. Yes, it would be good to be alone again now that they all hate her. Feeling better, she got up, ready to get back into bed when the doorbell rang. That was quick. Had mom forgotten her key? Ginny ran downstairs to hug her mom and thank her for coming to her rescue again, but when she opened the front door, it wasn’t her mom standing in front of her. It was Maxine, looking disheveled and worried out of her mind.</p><p>“Who do I need to kill? Was it Hunter? I knew he was hiding some dark deeds under that angelic face. No one is that nice all the time! I’ll cut his dick off. What did he do?” Ginny couldn’t help but smile at Maxine’s ridiculous display. How was she going to go back to life without this ray of sunshine in her life? She engulfed her in a hug, holding her like it would be the last time they ever saw each other. Involuntarily, she let out a sob, which led Maxine to grab onto her and drag her to the sofa, leaving her briefly to get her a glass of water. “Drink. All of it” she ordered, and Ginny had no choice but to obey.</p><p>“It wasn’t Hunter. It was no one’s fault. I just get like this sometimes. I’m so sorry you had to come out and see me. Please, just go home. I’ll be fine! I’m just embarrassed. Please don’t tell anyone about this” It all came out of her in a fast jumble. She could see Maxine wasn’t even entertaining the thought of leaving her alone like this and she was grateful. She would be able to tell her the horrible truth now and start getting used to life without her again. </p><p>“Well, thank God it wasn’t Hunter. I would have felt like it was all my fault for introducing you two! I knew you’d be perfect together. How was the date? I want every detail, right now! I’ve been going crazy trying to imagine all the perfect ways the date could have gone. Have I mentioned that I’ve never been on a date either? So you have to tell me everything to prepare me for what to expect on my first date” She said all of this without stopping to take a single breath. Ginny was beginning to suspect that she ranted for larger amounts of time when she was feeling uncomfortable or nervous. Cute. </p><p>“Oh the date was fantastic” she started, remembering how well her evening had started, “Hunter and I are going to be great friends. It was so fun getting to spend time with him one on one” and from there, she started to talk more and more animatedly about her date with Hunter. When she got to the part where he got on his knee and kissed her hand, they both started laughing so hard, Ginny couldn’t remember why she had even been upset in the first place.  </p><p> Her face fell as she remembered why Maxine was at her house so late at night at her mother’s request. She was just explaining the gift that Georgia had left for her on her bed when her mother burst through the front door like a woman possessed. When she saw Ginny and Maxine sitting on the couch giggling together, she stopped against the door and smiled, relieved that her daughter had someone who could bring her back from the brink of mental collapse. She walked over to the couch, sat down, and put her arm around her daughter.</p><p>“You scared me there, Peach. Maxine, thank you so much for comin over to save my little girl. Glad to have you in the family” she said softly, kissing the top of Ginny’s head. Her face got serious though, and she said in a low voice “Now, who do I have to kill?”</p><p>This set Maxine into another fit of giggles as she revealed “That’s what I said too! Don’t worry, it’s not Hunter.”</p><p>It was time for Ginny to reveal her ugly truth and face the consequences now. The room was still, as if everyone knew that something horrible were about to happen. She had thought about how she would reveal what she was about to say. It needed to be quick and straight to the point. She took a deep breath.</p><p>“I’m so sorry for making you worry about me. I put myself in this situation with my awful choices and decisions. I don’t deserve your support and I’m sorry if” she let out a small sob, “I’m sorry if you hate me after you find out what I have to say, but you won’t be able to hate me more than I hate myself for being so stupid. After I got home from my date with Hunter, I had sex with Marcus Baker.”</p><p>Utter silence. Ginny couldn’t bear to look up to see the looks of betrayal and hurt. She just waited with her eyes closed for someone to say something. Anything.</p><p>“Well, fuck.” Thanks, Georgia.</p>
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<a name="section0010"><h2>10. Chapter 10</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“I… I didn’t even know you knew my brother. You had sex? But.. How did he? You’ve only just met him? And his girlfriend! Padma! When did…?” Ginny could see the see pure shock and confusion on her new friend’s face. She guessed that was better than anger, but that was probably on its way. Daring to peek at her mom, she saw The Look on her face, meaning shit was about to go down. Georgia plastered her sweeter-than-sugar smile on her face and turned to Maxine.</p><p>“Maxine, honey, I’m about to torture every detail of information out of my daughter and I know that some of this may include sexual information about your brother so I understand if you’d rather not hear it. Do you want to stay or would you prefer to go home?” She hadn’t broken her smile at all this entire time, but Ginny knew she was going to be in for a world of hurt. Her mom was a psycho bitch, and right now, she was pissed off and trying to look good in front of company.</p><p>But Maxine wasn’t really company. Still in shock, and looking like she was afraid to blink in case the whole world disappeared, Maxine intoned in a far away voice, “If I go home right now, I’m going to kill my brother? and I don’t feel like going to jail right now, so I’ll stay here if that’s alright?”. </p><p>“Perfect!” The smile slipped off of Georgia’s face as she turned to Ginny. “Spill. Every detail.”</p><p>Without thinking twice, Ginny relayed every single detail of her night, starting from when she sent Austin to bed with his headphones, to having her private time interrupted. She hesitated over the parts where she compared Maxine and Marcus in her mind, but decided she might as well be fully honest at this point. It was, after all, probably the last conversation she was going to have with her. When she got to the end and started describing her spiraling thoughts, her breath started to get heavy again and she was getting that trapped feeling all over again. Everything seemed so far away, and when she managed to focus her mind, Maxine was yelling and ranting angrily. Ginny’s mind really snapped to alert when she heard the word “rape” and she immediately had to shut down that line of thinking.</p><p>“No! It was completely consensual. It felt amazing at the time and the regret only started afterwards. There was no rape at all.” She said it quickly and curled in on herself, ready for Maxine’s wrath to be rained down on her.</p><p>“That’s so typical of that god damned asshole! I told him to stay away from my new friend and what does he do? Go straight to her house to have sex with her and scare her away! Well, too bad Ginny. You’re my friend, and Marcus isn’t going to ruin this for us. You’re like a sister to me already, and we’ve only known each other two days but Marcus is dead to me. You can’t leave me because my dead brother was an asshole. We have to mourn his loss together as a family” and with that, she collapsed to her knees on the floor in front of where Ginny was sat on the couch. </p><p>Ginny and Georgia looked at each other incredulously, struggling to believe the absolutely ridiculous girl who had been dropped into their lives. There was a brief moment of silence before they all broke down into hysterical laughter. </p><p>When she looked at Maxine on the floor again, Ginny burst into tears, crying, “I’m sorry I slept with your brother after knowing him for only two days”.</p><p>Maxine sat next to her and wrapped her arms around her, crying, “I’m sorry my brother took your virginity after knowing you for only two days!”</p><p>Georgia, not one to be left out, wrapped her arms around both girls and yelled “And I’m sorry, but you’re going on the pill, young lady! And we need to get you a morning after pill, because you didn’t mention any contraception in your tale of two orgasms.”</p><p>Although she had probably ruined her chances of getting a date with Maxine, Ginny felt pretty good about the way the night had turned out. After all, she could have decided to do something really stupid, like try to keep it a secret. She dreaded having to face the broody Baker twin at school again, but at least she hadn't lost Maxine.</p>
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<a name="section0011"><h2>11. Chapter 11</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Ginny Miller woke up, hoping that the night before had all been one terrible dream. She rolled over in bed and saw Little Sunshine nestled innocently between her sheets and let out a groan. Nope, apparently that really had happened. She threw the covers over her head and decided that perhaps she should talk to Georgia about moving to another state and starting afresh. They gave Wellsbury a try, but it was really just not the right place for them. How could she possibly think that her mother would be so reasonable? Only moments after deciding on that thought, Georgia blew into the room like a tornado, opening the curtains and exclaiming what a beautiful day it was to visit the doctors and start anti-babying ourselves. Just lovely. </p>
<p>After that pleasant experience in the doctor’s office detailing every aspect of her new sex life, taking the Plan B pill, and getting tested for every STD under the sun, Ginny decided that she would lie low at school that day. Although Maxine had been in a forgiving mood last night, Ginny didn’t expect that peaceful attitude to make it to the morning. She was just going to blend into the background today and focus on her studies. She was leaving this town with an education and no babies, god damnit. </p>
<p>Her morning lessons were productive and she managed to avoid sitting near Maxine or Hunter in all their shared classes. She liked Hunter, but she knew he was definitely Maxine’s friend more than hers, and she wouldn’t feel comfortable hanging out with him knowing what she had done the night before. She spent her lunch hour hiding in the girls’ toilets furthest away from the cafeteria so she wouldn’t accidentally run into anyone. She closed the cubicle door and sat on the toilet seat’s lid, legs crossed so no one knew she was in there. This wasn’t her first time hiding in a toilet and she was sure it wouldn’t be her last. </p>
<p>About 15 minutes before the bell for last period went, she heard a group of girls giggling and having fun as they entered the toilet. They were talking about makeup and blending when Ginny recognised Maxine’s voice over the others. She was saying that she was preparing to go to the audition for the school production and the others were helping her to apply some makeup for it. Like an addict waiting for their next hit, Ginny soaked up every moment of Max’s conversation, already missing her excited rants about every subject she could think of. She heard someone else enter the bathroom followed by the rest of the girls leaving, which signaled to Ginny that now was a good time to go to class. As she sneakily stalked out of  the bathroom, she realised that it had all been in vain. Standing outside, waiting impatiently, was a newly made-up Maxine, tapping her foot with her hands on her hips.</p>
<p>“I know you’ve been avoiding me today, and I thought I’d let you have your space and play your game for one day.” She walked up to Ginny and linked their arms, moving her towards the spot that Ginny knew Maxine and her friends would usually occupy. “But then I was so bored today without being able to laugh and joke with you and I thought ‘Why am I being punished because my brother is such an asshole? How is that fair?’ and so here I am, reclaiming my new bestie. You have to wish me luck before my audition, too.” She ended by sitting on a comfortable-looking armchair with a dramatic flounce, and pulling Ginny into her lap. </p>
<p>Ginny looked deep into Max’s eyes, wondering if she could wish her luck with a friendly kiss. On the lips. With tongue. She was looking at Max’s lips, curved into a lazy smile, then into her eyes. Max’s head was tilted to the side as she observed Ginny, but Ginny’s focus was all on the mouth she wanted on hers. While she contemplated the tension between her and her new friend, the rest of The Cool Gang showed up and ruined the moment. “You don’t need luck, you’ve got pure talent. But good luck!” She said as she started getting up from the chair. She started speed walking to her next class only to be stopped by an arm being flung casually around her shoulder. </p>
<p>“By the way, we’re hanging out at Brody’s tonight after my audition. I’ve decided you can’t be trusted on your own and you have to spend more time with me and my friends. Y’know,” She stopped walking and looked around conspiratorially before whispering, “Because you had sex with my brother.” She started walking again then said in a sing-song voice, “You owe me! You have to come.”</p>
<p>Ginny grabbed her arm and pulled her to the side of the corridor against a wall. Max’s eyes lit up and she looked intently at Ginny’s mouth. Ginny was briefly distracted by Maxine’s reaction but had to snap out of it because she had something important to find out.</p>
<p>“Does he know you know? He told me not to tell anyone and I immediately blabbed to my mommy and his sister.” She looked at her pleadingly, hoping to portray how pathetic she felt with just that look.</p>
<p>Max let out a sigh and met Ginny’s eyes, “I have not spoken a word to my asshole brother since last night, and don’t plan to until he sorts his shit out. This goes way deeper than just what he did to you, Ginny. He’s been acting out for too long and it needs to end before he gets really hurt. I won’t betray your confidence.” She put a smile on her face and started leading them towards their final class of the day. “Now, what time should I pick you up tonight?” she asked with an angelic look on her face. ‘These Bakers are going to be the death of me,’ thought Ginny as she was led to her final class. It would probably be worth it though.</p>
<p>Spending an evening in Brody’s basement was just as bad as she thought it would be. No, actually, it was even worse, because Hunter wasn’t there to balance out the rest of the people she didn’t like. And she had no book to read. She looked around the room, hoping for something to distract her from the terrible awkwardness she felt sitting on the couch with a group of near-strangers, but there was nothing at all. No books, magazines, not even a comic book. Maxine was flitting around, enjoying spending time with her friends, and Ginny couldn’t help but feel she was being punished for last night. She definitely deserved it if she was. She hadn’t realised that Maxine could be so diabolical. Was it wrong that she was kind of turned on by that? Probably. </p>
<p>Back to the current situation at hand, Ginny was left sitting at a sofa with Double Spice (who was both Ginger and Scary), Nora, Something beginning with S, and the resident psycho, who was playing video games and spewing vitriol every now and then to add a bit of discomfort to the conversation. Nora was trying to include Ginny in the conversations, asking her about her favourite music and making a lot of friendly eye contact, but Ginny just wanted to sink into the couch cushions. When Something beginning with S started talking about her relationship with Hunter and Double Spice started adding extra information about how great their relationship had been, Ginny had to physically restrain herself to stop herself from laughing or saying something mean. Insulting her friends would not make Maxine any more likely to forgive her. So, she endured the rest of the night until it was time to go home. Maxine’s friends were definitely unbearably worse without Hunter there to act as a buffer, and Ginny decided she needed to reestablish her friendship with him as a matter of urgency. Besides, she had missed their witty discussions and his silly displays that day. He really was growing on her. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>-</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The next day at school, Ginny strolled up to her locker, ready to face another hellish day. She squared her shoulders, held her head up high, and pretended she didn’t feel like a strong breeze would knock her over. She had started to feel the effects of the Plan B pill this morning, with unbelievably painful stomach cramps and bleeding, but she wasn’t going to let anyone know how affected she was. She would be calm, cool, and collected. </p>
<p>As she got closer to her locker, she realised that there was someone standing right where she needed to be. Her bravado faltered as she remembered that she really wasn’t very good at pretending to be confident. She was ready to wait silently for the student to finish collecting their things from their locker when she realised that he wasn’t even using one of the lockers. He was just standing there, blocking her way! Seriously? Typical. If he didn’t need the lockers, why was he just standing there? The mystery asshole turned around and all of Ginny’s frustrations dissolved into incredible relief at seeing a friendly face looking back at her.</p>
<p>“Ginny Miller, where the hell have you been?! Are you avoiding your new lover after our fabulous date?” It was Hunter, waiting for her at her locker with a big goofy grin and his hands on his hips, as though she were his wayward child who had finally returned after going missing for the afternoon. </p>
<p>Ginny didn’t realise how tense and combative she had been feeling ever since That Night. There was a weird vibe at home, she could tell her mom was disappointed in her and they hadn’t really been talking. Maxine was still punishing her by forcing her to spend time with her awful friends, and they hadn’t had any alone time since That Night either. Ginny had been feeling so isolated and ostracised, that seeing Hunter’s smiling face made her happy in a way she never would have expected. </p>
<p>She couldn’t help the squeal that came out of her mouth as she ran up to him and jumped into his arms. It was just so nice to see a friendly face that Ginny couldn’t stop the excitement from spilling out. </p>
<p>Luckily, Hunter was one to roll with the punches. He held her tightly in his arms, twirling her around and grinning from ear to ear. This was probably the reaction he got from everyone, so he wasn’t phased by the running hug. Ginny was starting to feel a bit embarrassed by her display; she wasn’t usually one for public displays of affection. As he gently returned her to the ground, he easily lifted her school bag and waited for her to get her books from the locker before grabbing those as well. Usually, Ginny would be annoyed by the assumption that she needed a big strong man to carry her books and bag, but she was in a lot of pain at the moment and all she could feel was gratitude towards her ever cheerful friend. </p>
<p>“Sorry I couldn’t make it to Brody’s last night; I had some extra tutoring to do at the last minute. Was it absolutely unbearable without me?” he teased with a cheeky smile, dramatically placing his hand on his chest with a smile.</p>
<p>Ginny burst out laughing, drawing a few more glances from their surrounding peers. “Oh, you have no idea. I honestly wouldn’t be able to describe how bad it was, even if I tried my hardest. I got to meet your ex girlfriend though! And I got to spend a nice long time in Preston’s presence - he isn’t terrifying at all…” She stopped dead in the middle of the corridor, let out a sigh and turned to face Hunter.</p>
<p>“Please, never leave me alone with those people again.” she begged, with the most pathetic puppy dog eyes she could muster. He laughed and wrapped his arm around her shoulders but made no promises. Ginny was finally starting to feel like her best self again. Calm, at peace, ready to see the good in the world. She just had to get one thing off her chest. She grabbed Hunter’s hand and pulled him to the side of the corridor, looking around before speaking quietly.</p>
<p>“Listen, I just wanted to make sure we’re on the same page here because you’re quickly becoming one of my favourite people in the world and I don’t want anything to ruin that. I really like you and I think you could be one of my best friends. We are friends right?” It all came out in a fast jumble of word vomit, but she was just so nervous and didn’t want to mess this up. Ginny looked up at Hunter’s face to gauge his reaction. She let out a relieved sigh when she saw the smile still on Hunter’s face and no sign of heartbreak. Thank God. Feeling emboldened, she continued “I mean, our hugs and touches are great but they don’t make me tingly in my lady bits if you know what I mean…” she trailed off with a saucy wink, half mortified and half amused.</p>
<p>Hunter let out a chuckle, he seemed genuinely amused by her rambling and didn’t look like he was going to put her out of her misery at all. He leaned in close to her and whispered, “Why are we whispering? Are we just secret friends now?” His voice started getting louder as he moved backwards, “Are you ashamed to be seen hanging out with your Uncle Hunter, young lady?” </p>
<p>He started skipping away from her, down the corridor, looking like an absolutely ridiculous embarrassment, carrying two school bags and a pile of books. He somehow managed to make it look elegant and effortless, despite the fact that he was acting like a complete weirdo. He turned around, challenging her to join him or die of embarrassment.</p>
<p>Ginny was sick of feeling embarrassed and ashamed. Maybe, it was a good idea to just be an absolute weirdo with Hunter in the corridors. He looked like he was having fun and he wasn’t embarrassed at all. If he thought she would be too embarrassed to join his ridiculous display, he had another thing coming! Ginny giddily started skipping towards him but stopped and doubled over in pain as she remembered the trauma she was currently putting her uterus through. </p>
<p>A look of concern flashed across Hunter’s face as he skidded on the floor on his knees towards Ginny. “It’s fine, just period cramps, I think that’s enough skipping for me today. Let’s go,” she said through gritted teeth, trying to get the pain under control. The embarrassment was kicking in again as she realised what a fool she must have looked like. She started walking quickly to her next class ready to hide in shame for the rest of the day. </p>
<p>She heard Hunter’s voice calling her name so she stopped and turned around. He was still on his knees in the middle of the corridor, with a mischievous look on his face. She was ready to give up on this embarrassment experiment, but it seemed that Hunter was only just beginning.</p>
<p>He started wiggling his hips and humming the tune of some 80s song her mom used to listen to. Then he started singing softly, “Don’t… Don’t you want me? You know I can’t believe it when you say that you won’t see me?” repeating the line and getting louder and louder as he stood up and started moving towards her. </p>
<p>How could one person possibly endure so much cringey embarrassment? He was singing in front of everyone in the corridors and he didn’t look embarrassed at all! He was radiating absolute glee! This town was so fucking weird. Ginny wanted to hide and disappear, while this supposedly popular guy was completely embarrassing himself and singing “Don’t you Want Me” by the Human League - a very obscure song from the 80s. She had been to schools where at least 3 people would have started beating the shit out of him for this display, calling him a “fag”, and yet the kids in this school were looking at him in awe and amusement. </p>
<p>Ginny could see how it might seem funny to other people. She was pretty annoyed though, and she knew that he could tell. Hunter was pushing the limits of her embarrassment and showing her that she needed to stop worrying about what other people thought and just have fun. She understood that, theoretically. But she was in pain, she was not in the mood for his philosophical experiments, and she was going to beat the shit out of him when she got her hands on him again.</p>
<p>He must have noticed the murderous look on her face, because he skipped right past her, singing at the top of his lungs “DON’T YOU WANT ME BABY? DON’T YOU WANT ME, GIIIIIIIIIIIRL?” and then started running in the direction of their next class, still singing all the while. </p>
<p>He knew that Ginny wouldn’t be able to chase him because of the pain she was going through, so he must have felt pretty safe. Ginny could wait, though. She’d embarrass him if that’s what he wanted. This meant war. For the moment, she settled for screaming after him, “HUNTER CHEN, GET BACK HERE YOU COWARD! YEAH, YOU BETTER RUN! AND YOU BETTER HIDE WHEN YOU SEE ME COMING!” </p>
<p>The hilarity of the situation finally dawned on her and she started laughing, ready to follow him to class. Sometimes, she realised, she just needed some ridiculous silliness to remind herself that the world wasn’t all doom and gloom. Still smiling, she looked around before moving forward.</p>
<p>The smile was wiped from her face when she looked up and locked eyes with Marcus Baker. He was staring at her with a look of pure hatred in his eyes. His facial expression was a mixture of anger and betrayal, as if he were silently asking “That guy? Really? That’s who you want?”. He couldn’t come up to her and say it to her face though, because he was standing with his girlfriend. The beautiful girl was happily chatting away to her boyfriend while he glared daggers at another girl for daring to have fun with her friend. Ginny definitely did not need to be involved in that bullshit. How an asshole like Marcus managed to land and keep a babe like Padma, she would never know. </p>
<p>Ginny turned and walked away, trying to put that weird encounter out of her mind. It had hurt to see the look of hatred and anger on Marcus’ face. She hadn’t done anything to him - anything at all. As far as he was aware, he had been able to have unprotected sex with her and didn’t have to face any consequences. He didn’t know she had told her mom and Maxine about it; Maxine had promised that he had no idea. He didn’t even know that she had taken Plan B to make sure she didn’t get pregnant. Ginny didn’t think she would ever understand that boy, but she should probably let him know that she had taken the pill so he wouldn’t have any little bastards running around in 9 months. Someone needed to talk to him about practising safe sex, because he seemed like a disaster just waiting to happen. Did he just sneak around having unprotected sex with every girl who looked twice at him? Was he not worried about accidentally fathering any children while he sowed his wild oats? Or getting STDs? </p>
<p>For her own peace of mind, Ginny resolved to discretely let him know that there would be no Miller-Baker babies running around in the future. Later, though. When he was on his own. Maybe tomorrow. Ah, she’d get to it eventually. For now, she needed to think of a way to embarrass the dramatic, insane Hunter Chen, who had just made the foolish mistake of challenging a Miller publicly. He was going down in flames of embarrassment. She couldn’t wait.</p>
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<a name="section0012"><h2>12. Chapter 12</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>That AP English class was some absolute fucking bullshit and Ginny was now absolutely certain that her English teacher was a racist piece of shit. Her pleasant mood from the morning with Hunter had been absolutely shredded into a million pieces and she was left feeling like a powder keg about to explode. “Only one person got a perfect score, look out for Hunter Chen,” she mimicked her asshole teacher’s voice as she walked down the corridor. He had the AUDACITY to say that before handing her back her own test score with 100% written at the top. What, so she wasn’t one to watch, even though she got a perfect score on her first day at a new school? He can’t get away with such blatant… ugh!! Is it racism? Ginny wasn’t sure. </p>
<p>She wanted to talk to her mom about it, but she knew that Georgia was still trying to process the fact that her daughter makes terrible choices when it came to her love life. Ginny couldn’t burden her mother any more than she was already doing. Talking to Maxine was out of the question, because she was focusing only on her Sing, Sing auditions and was starting to become obsessed with some beautiful, talented girl named Riley. Ginny couldn’t tell if Maxine wanted to fight Riley for the main role in the production, or if she wanted to fuck her for it. That wasn’t fair to think about Maxine, but Ginny was not in a fair mood. Talking to Hunter was completely out of the question. He was her happy space, and she knew this would make things weird between them. She couldn’t afford to ruin any more of her relationships. So she guessed she was all alone to worry about it. </p>
<p>As she stormed through the hallways, Ginny was approached and stopped by a cheerful looking stranger. She had beautiful, deep dark skin, and her hair was neatly pulled into bantu knots at the top of her head. She looked like an African Queen and Ginny was stomping around looking like a swamp monster. She was not in the mood for some cheery bullshit.</p>
<p>“Hey, you’re new around here, right?” God, even her voice was a deep, rich melody. “I’m Bracia, I’m captain of the hockey team and we don’t do cuts,” she continued. She faltered upon seeing the storm on Ginny’s face.</p>
<p>“Look, I’m sure you’re really nice and peppy, but I’m just not in the right place right now. Excuse me--” Ginny tried to side step the hockey captain but was stopped by a strong arm and a concerned gaze. How do these people have so much time to be concerned about others? Don’t they have their own shit to deal with?</p>
<p>“What’s wrong? You look way too upset for someone who’s only been in this school for three days.” Bracia started manouvering them towards a benched area outside so Ginny could sit down. She had never noticed this area before. It was nice to get some fresh air, at least. And it was quiet. </p>
<p>“I don’t really want to talk about it and I have classes to get to. I’m just trying to adjust, I guess.” Ginny was trying to get out of this situation. She was the worst at making new friends and she already had enough drama with the two she already had. She didn’t need anymore drama in her life, thanks.</p>
<p>Bracia sighed, noticing that Ginny had some pretty high walls up around her. She persisted, “Listen. I know what it’s like to feel like an outsider in this place. I grew up as one of the only black kids in an all white neighbourhood and I just want you to know that you’re not alone in this fight. I’ve been meaning to reach out to you earlier, and I’m sorry I didn’t. I just never managed to catch you on your own until now.” She took a deep breath and continued, maintaining eye-contact with Ginny, “Are you sure you don’t want to talk about it? I can be a really good listener?”</p>
<p>Ginny was completely thrown off-guard by this girl’s kindness. She had been a complete bitch to her when she was only trying to help. She let out a wobbly sigh and asked the question that had been bothering her the most, “Is everyone in this town racist?” </p>
<p>Bracia looked taken aback by the question and thought quietly for a moment. She looked back at where they had just been standing, then looked at Ginny. “You just came from English, right? I assume you had Gitten?” After Ginny nodded, she continued, “Yeah, he’s a racist asshole, but most people aren’t as bad as him, I promise. I had him last year, and he called me B the whole time because he couldn’t pronounce the name Bracia. Then he had the nerve to pronounce Dostoyevsky perfectly for an entire semester.” She rolled her eyes as she said it, but Ginny could tell that it had really bothered her. She often forgot that racism wasn’t something that only affected her because she was always surrounded by white people who don’t notice the subtle racist jabs like other black people would.</p>
<p>Ginny put her hand on Bracia’s and squeezes it in consolidation. She was grateful that this stranger would share her experiences to make her feel better. She took a deep breath and muttered, “He told me he didn’t think I could keep up on my first day of school, then gave us a pop quiz. He told the class he was disappointed that only one person got a perfect score: Hunter Chen. But then he handed me back my quiz and I had also received a perfect score. I feel stupid because it was just one comment, and you could argue that he might have forgotten. But he made such a big deal about how Hunter was the best student in class because of his score, and then he looked me dead in the eye while he handed me my paper, like he was saying ‘I don’t care how well you do, you’ll always be worthless’ and I honestly just feel like shit. I mean, what’s the point in succeeding and working hard when you never get recognition for it? English is my best subject but I’m worried he’s going to make it my worst.”</p>
<p>Wow. It felt good to say it all out loud like that. She hadn’t expected all those thoughts to come bursting out of her, but she felt so much better after being able to say it, even if Bracia turned around and told her to stop being paranoid.</p>
<p>“Wow. That is some next level, psychological manipulation bullshit. I think we’re going to need to discuss this with back-up. These things start small, but they can build up and I honestly don’t know what advice to give you, I’m sorry. I’ve just been keeping my head down, but it sounds like he’s going to actively try to impact your grades and that isn’t fair. Why don’t you come sit with me and my friends at lunch time and we can all talk about what to do? They might have some better insights into this than I do. What do you say?” Bracia was looking at her hopefully and Ginny couldn’t believe the reaction she got.</p>
<p>Usually, she got the impression that all this racism was just in her head, and people made her feel paranoid when she shared her thoughts about it. Bracia’s reaction made her feel validated. Even though she didn’t usually like meeting big groups of new people, Ginny was a little excited to be able to talk about everything she had been experiencing with people who would actually understand. Maybe it would be good for her.</p>
<p>“That would be really great. Thanks,” she responded to Bracia before standing up. She was definitely going to be late to her next class, but this conversation was worth it. Before she turned and started walking back to class, she just had to thank this girl one more time, “Hey, thanks for catching me, there. I really needed this talk and you didn’t have any reason to help me out.”</p>
<p>Bracia looked at her pityingly, like she was a wounded cub left to fend for themselves in the wild, “You’re not in this alone, Ginny. We’ve got to look after each other. If you want a great place to let out some of your anger though, you should really head to the hockey pitch. It’s great to imagine Gitten’s head when you’re smashing the hockey pucks around!”</p>
<p>-</p>
<p>At lunch time, Ginny caught Maxine and let her know that she would be sitting with Bracia and her friends. Things were still really weird between them and Maxine seemed distracted anyway, so Ginny was glad that she wouldn’t have to sit with her terrifying friendship group at lunch time. </p>
<p>As she approached the table with Bracia and her friends, she heard Bracia announcing “And this is the newest member of the Gitten is a Racist Asshole out to get me Club, Ginny!” before she turned to Ginny and explained, “I spoke to some of the others about your situation, and wouldn’t you be surprised to know that they’ve all had bad experiences with that particular member of staff?”</p>
<p>A big, mixed-raced girl with short hair chimed in at this point, exclaiming, “I didn’t talk to anyone about it because I didn’t think it was such a big deal! He made me feel dumb and uncomfortable, but I had never liked English anyway, so I assumed it was just because I was bad at the subject he taught. I’m Alicia, by the way. Should we start this off like an AA meeting? Hi everyone, I’m Alicia and I am a victim of Gitten’s Racism.”</p>
<p>The rest of the table laughed good naturedly and continued in a similar vein. A tall, muscly black guy with short hair and dimples stood up and winked at Alicia making her blush and look away, “I’m Jacob, and I too am a victim of Gitten’s Racism. When we studied a poetry unit, I wrote a poem just like everyone else, but he told me it wasn’t a rap battle unit when I read mine out to the class. I had not written a rap. It was a poem about the strong women in my life who I respected.” He placed his hand on his chest and looked down in mock-dismay, but Ginny was horrified. That was pretty blatant racism. </p>
<p>A beautiful, dark-skinned boy stood up timidly after Jacob sat down. He looked like a younger version of Bracia, and he kept looking to her for reassurance. He held his head up, and in a rich, deep, melodious voice, he said, “I’m David. Bracia and I go to drama camp every year. I’m going to be an actor when I get out of here, and I play a lead role in every production we perform at drama camp. Gitten has refused to give me a speaking role in every drama unit we have studied at school, because he says I don’t ‘fit the role’. I can out-act any of these other bitches, and I know he did the same thing to Bracia, too.” He sat down quickly, looking embarrassed, but Ginny was glad he got to speak his truth. It was clear to her that this was the first time many of them were able to share their experiences with racism and it lifted her heart to know that she had inspired this. </p>
<p>Ginny was grinning from ear to ear when Bracia cat-called her brother and shouted “You know it!” in support of what he was saying. </p>
<p>Ginny stood up and looked each one of the table members in the eye. “I felt so relieved when I was able to share my story with Bracia this morning. I had thought that it was all in my head and that there was no point talking about it because no one would understand how it made me feel. I felt small, I felt unimportant, and I felt worthless. It’s not fair that someone in a position of authority is making his students feel this way with no repercussions. No one has the right to make other people feel worthless.” Her voice was getting a bit louder and more passionate with each statement, but it was true! This was some bullshit and it wasn’t fair.</p>
<p>She continued, “I know that on their own, each of these stories may seem unimportant. It may even seem like a coincidence, like Alicia said, as a result of us not doing well in his class. But we have here a group of talented, ambitious young people who have been made to feel powerless and unable to express themselves because of one man who is treating them differently because of the colour of their skin. That is not right, and I’m going to tell my mom about it.” By the end of her speech, Ginny was becoming aware that people at other tables were starting to stare at her, even though they probably couldn’t hear exactly what she was saying. She was inclined to feel embarrassed, but she was sick of giving in to that feeling. </p>
<p>She looked up at David and saw that he had a delighted smile on his face, too. “That’s a brilliant idea, Ginny! Let’s all tell our parents. Bracia, our dad is a civil rights lawyer, surely he will be able to come up with some argument for getting rid of Gitten? Or creating policies to stop other pupils from going through what we’ve all been through!” There was an excited buzz at the table as they all started talking about how their parents would react to finding out that there was a teacher in the school treating all the black kids badly. These were the children of powerful, rich, black people who had some influence in society. Ginny couldn’t believe that this asshole had gotten away with treating them like shit for so long, just because they were all in different classes and tried to dismiss the racism as isolated incidents. It was good to be able to talk to other people, Ginny was beginning to see that. For the first time in her life, Ginny was beginning to feel like she belonged.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0013"><h2>13. Chapter 13</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Ginny definitely did not belong here. She had been ambushed after school by Maxine, ready to dole out more punishment for The Incident. She had cheerfully explained that she had to go to her callbacks after school so she wouldn’t be able to hang out, but left with a cheery, “Have fun shopping without me!” Looking pointedly at Ginny as if to say “You better have fun on this shopping trip with my friends. You owe me.” </p>
<p>And so it was that Ginny found herself in a bougie, rich, upscale clothes shop with Nora and Scary Ginger Spice. She was absolutely certain that Scary Ginger hated her and wanted her gone. While Nora and Abbie walked around the shop, touching all the various clothing items and complaining about their body image issues, Ginny tried to make herself as small as possible until this episode of torture was over with. She had already noticed the shop assistant looking at her as if she were a dirty prostitute sullying the shop with her presence. She didn’t want to be here in the first place, but the suspicious glances were just such a great addition to her experience. </p>
<p>“Ooh MOOD, Ginny what do you think of this top? Should I get it?” Abbie was calling to her from across the store, forcing Ginny to move closer and interact with her.</p>
<p>“Yeah, it looks great,” she responded. What else was she supposed to say? Abbie looked at her with a weird smile on her face, then she ripped the tag off the top and stuffed it under her jacket.</p>
<p>Oh, shit. She was shoplifting now? And Ginny had witnessed it and was doing nothing to stop it! Did that make her an accomplice? The shop assistant was already suspicious of her, and now Abbie had called her over to be party to their criminal activities. Did Maxine put them up to this? Was she really that vindictive? Ginny started to back away while Nora complained about Abbie doing this again, like she had just eaten something gross and farted rather than breaking the law and making them all accomplices.</p>
<p>As Ginny stared on in disbelief, Abbie looked around to make sure the shop assistant wasn’t on the store front as she walked around putting jewellery up her sleeves and in her pockets. She picked up a hideous pair of earrings, holding them up to Ginny’s ears.</p>
<p>“These would look great on you, don’t you think?” She said to Ginny with a challenging look. Ginny gazed helplessly at Nora, who looked back at her with another helpless expression. Well, she’s not going to be of any help. </p>
<p>Ginny smiled awkwardly, taking the earrings from Abbie, “Yeah, sure” she said as she placed the earrings in her jeans pockets. Abbie looked pleased, like Ginny was her puppy who had finally learned a basic command. </p>
<p>Abbie turned around and decided, “I’m bored now. Let’s go get some iced coffee,” and started heading towards the door. Ginny grabbed the ugly earrings out of her pocket and threw them quickly back on the display. She wasn’t going to jail for stealing some hideous earrings just so she could be friends with these toxic girls. She had had enough and she was going to give Maxine a piece of her mind when she got home. Ginny stormed through the shop after Abbie and Nora, only to hear the suspicious shop assistant calling them back to stop them.</p>
<p>Of course. Of course, she was ready to catch her with the shop lifter, even though she hadn’t stolen anything. Ginny could bet that this was somehow all going to be her fault, as part of some master plan for revenge. Well, she was ready to throw Abbie under the bus and pretend she knew nothing about that shop lifting. There was nothing to prove that she was a part of it.</p>
<p>“You there!” The shop assistant was pointing in their direction, so Ginny turned around to look at Abbie. “No, you at the front. I need to search your bags and your pockets. This way, please!”</p>
<p>Ginny looked in shock at Nora and noticed the look of terror on Abbie’s face. Oh, right, she thought Ginny was stupid enough to try to leave a shop with stolen items in her pocket. She walked over to where the shop assistant was waiting, stomping her feet the entire time, and amazed that this kind of blatant racism was allowed in this day and age. She hadn’t stolen anything, but she was being singled out as the only black member of the group.</p>
<p>She turned back to Nora, “Hey, Nora, can you get your phone out and start filming for me please? If she calls the police and I end up getting shot, I want the world to see which racist assholes are responsible.”</p>
<p>It seemed that the gravity of the situation hadn’t fully permeated Abbie’s little mind until that moment, as tears started streaming down her face. Yeah, idiot. Black people get killed for committing misdemeanors, check your privilege next time you try to involve someone in your cries for attention. Ginny didn’t move again until she was sure Nora had her camera pointed at her.</p>
<p>She turned to the shop keeper and said, loudly and clearly, “Can we just clarify now that I was in here with these two girls shopping, when you stopped us from leaving the shop, singled me out, and asked me to come over to be searched alone without an adult present? May I ask why you chose to ask me, the only black member of the group, to be stopped and searched?” Her voice was confident, but she was shaking like a leaf. She had seen videos of people being stopped and shot when they were driving their cars. She was an accomplice to a real crime here, and she had no idea how this situation would play out. She really needed her mom.</p>
<p>The shop assistant stepped closer and said, “I saw you putting jewellery in your pocket over there! You were trying to steal from the store.” Looking smug and validated. “I should be on the phone to the police”</p>
<p>Ginny stepped back and put her hands in the air, allowing the shop assistant to search her pockets and her bag. She looked at Nora to make sure she was still filming. This was possibly the most humiliating experience of her life. She never wanted to come back to this shop, or see any of these people again. She was terrified that the shop assistant would find all the items on Abbie and blame Ginny for coercing her into stealing. Tears of fear and humiliation started streaming down her face as the shop assistant continued to look in vain for the stolen jewellery. Gitten’s treatment of her in school was nothing compared to the humiliation she was feeling now. Would there be any consequences for the shop assistant? Ginny doubted it. She was well within her rights to be suspicious of anyone in her shop. It didn’t stop the sting of betrayal and humiliation from coursing through Ginny, though. </p>
<p>When the shop assistant was finished searching her, Ginny reached into her pocket and pulled out her phone. She sniffled, in a weak and pathetic voice, “I was just taking a picture of those earrings because I thought they were so ugly. I put my phone in my pocket after I had taken the pictures. I didn’t steal anything from your stupid shop. Please may I call my mom now so she can come and pick me up?”</p>
<p>The shop assistant brought a chair for her, allowing Ginny to sit down and call her mom. She didn’t apologise or try to make her feel better, but she did bring her a glass of water. Ginny didn’t even pretend she was going to drink anything this woman gave her. She didn’t make eye contact with Abbie or Nora as she called her mom. She hoped Nora wasn’t still filming. </p>
<p>When her mom came to pick her up, she started yelling at the shop assistant about the mayor and racial profile, but Ginny was too exhausted to pay attention. She was so tired. She had been through so many emotions in her short time in Wellsbury. There was nothing more for her to feel. She was just numb. She didn’t want to feel any more. Her mom led her out of the shop and back to the car. Ginny wasn’t sure what happened to Abbie and Nora, but she didn’t want to see them for a long time. She didn’t want to see anyone at all. She waited silently in the car while her mom went to talk to someone across the street. She still couldn’t believe what she had just gone through. She had never spent time with people who actively wished harm upon her. Her mom and Austin were always trying to find ways to lift each other up, and make each others’ lives better. Why would you spend time with someone if you wanted to make them go to jail for some stupid crime? She didn’t think she’d ever understand Maxine’s friends, and she was starting to think that she never wanted to. She hoped Nora didn’t post that video all over instagram for attention, but she didn’t really care anymore if she did. </p>
<p>Ginny went straight up to bed without saying a word when she got home. No one would understand her situation this time. She had chosen to go into that shop with those girls. Bracia never would have put herself in a situation like that. It was all Ginny’s fault. She hid under the covers and started crying quietly. After a while, she felt her mom or Austin crawl into bed, cuddling her as she cried herself to a restless sleep. </p>
<p>She woke up a little while later to someone stroking her hair soothingly. It was so soft and comforting, she couldn’t help the smile that appeared on her face. She lifted the covers so she could cuddle closer to her mom, only to be met with a muscled, boobless chest. She groggily looked up and saw Marcus Baker, sitting next to her, reading her book and absentmindedly stroking her head. What. The. Fuck.</p>
<p>She jumped back angrily, suddenly not feeling tired at all, “No! Out. This day is bad enough, I don’t even care how or why you’re here. If you leave now, I won’t tell my mom. She’s from the south and she used to be in a biker gang so I know she definitely has guns somewhere and she wouldn’t be happy to know you’ve been climbing in my window like a serial killer!!” Her voice was getting louder and more hysterical now, as she moved closer to him and started pushing him off her bed. </p>
<p>“Why can’t you leave me alone?! I haven’t done anything to you! I haven’t told anyone about the other night,” she looked away - well, technically that wasn’t true, but he didn’t know that, “I haven’t approached you or bothered you or spoken to you since then. If you’re here to ask if I got Plan B to make sure I didn’t get pregnant, I did do that so you don’t have to worry. And I got a whole battery of STD tests, so we’re fine. We’re done, there’s no reason to talk to me again or come to my room. I’m not going to tell your girlfriend what you’ve been up to.” She took a deep breath. That was a lot of words. Why was he looking at her like a confused, kicked puppy?</p>
<p>He opened his mouth and blurted, “She’s not my girlfriend” in response. </p>
<p>Ginny looked at him incredulously. That’s all he took from that speech? She used the wrong term to describe his girl? She advanced on him again, pushing him towards the window, “Out! Get out! I don’t care.”</p>
<p>He stood his ground though, refusing to be moved. Hadn’t she been punished enough today? He cleared his throat, “I wanted to check on you. I heard what you were talking about at lunch with Bracia and her friends. Are you alright?” He said it all in a rush like it physically pained him to let so many words leave his mouth at once. </p>
<p>Ginny took a step back. Well, that wasn’t what she had been expecting. Taking advantage of her stunned silence, he continued, “It’s really shit if Gitten is treating you all like that, and I thought we could let all the parents know, not just the parents of those affected. I wanted to come and talk to you about it, but I saw you crying and then…” he trailed off, looking towards the bed. </p>
<p>Ginny let out a sigh. “It doesn’t really matter, nothing’s going to be done about it. Look, it was nice that you wanted to support and be an ally, and I’ll be able to process that better tomorrow or another day.” She closed her eyes and sighed again, putting her head in her hands. “The last few days have been really shit for me and I just.. I can’t with you. Not today. You can’t keep coming in my window just because I’m close and convenient. I’m not yours and I don’t give you blanket permission to invade my privacy. You have to ask before you come in, from now on.” </p>
<p>He looked crestfallen, but Ginny didn’t give a shit. She was so exhausted. She sat back down on her bed and looked away from him. </p>
<p>He hesitantly sat down next to her, looking at her like she was a bomb with a really short fuse. He put his hand on her shoulder gently, almost afraid that she would bite it off. “I’m sorry I’ve been coming up to your room uninvited. I didn’t think-- I just-- I wasn’t sure if you’d want to see me. Which, now, yes I realise that probably makes it even worse.” He chuckled drily, “I won’t do it again unless you ask me to. I really did just want to see if you were alright though.” </p>
<p>Ginny let out a sigh and fell back on her bed, looking up at the ceiling. Marcus slowly lowered himself so he was lying next to her.</p>
<p>“It really has been a shit week for me,” she said eventually. Even those few words felt like a monumental effort to get out. She was just so exhausted. Physically, emotionally. She was just done.</p>
<p>Marcus turned his head to look at her, “You could tell me about it. If you wanted. I heard there’s been a creepy guy sneaking into girls’ rooms around here. Sounds pretty worrying.”</p>
<p>A chuckle escaped Ginny and Marcus smiled like he had won a secret prize. She sighed again. “You have no idea.” She scoffed, sarcastically, “He had the nerve to take my virginity then ask me not to tell his girlfriend. A real charmer.” She glanced to the side and saw that he was wincing in embarrassment. Good. He should be embarrassed. “I didn’t even get to tell him that it was pretty good for a first time…” she trailed off. She hadn’t meant to say that. Now she was embarrassed. Great.</p>
<p>She refused to look over at the look of satisfaction that she was sure would be on his face. </p>
<p>“I got stopped and searched today. In a shop. Abbie was trying to make me steal jewellery for no reason, but I didn’t. The shop keeper still decided to stop me because she assumed a young black teenager in a shop was bad news.” She held her breath, willing the tears not to fall. She was so sick of being an emotional mess.</p>
<p>“She didn’t even pretend to search Abbie or Nora. I was the only person she was worried about. I thought she was going to call the police.” She choked out a laugh that sounded more like a sob.</p>
<p>“I made Nora film it, in case I ended up getting shot. I genuinely thought that was a possibility. I felt so fragile and exposed. I hadn’t done anything wrong, but I knew that didn’t matter to anyone in a position to make a difference.” She leaned into his shoulder, crying openly at this point, still speaking in between shaky breaths, “I knew that if I had died, I was just going to be added to a list of poor, dead black people who were in the wrong place at the wrong time.”</p>
<p>She had to stop these thoughts from spiralling out of control. She took a deep breath and held it in while she tried to steer her thoughts in a different direction. She was safe now. They hadn’t called the police. She hadn’t done anything wrong. She was fine. She was safe. She was home. She let out a shaky breath and sat up.</p>
<p>“Thanks for coming to check up on me. You really didn’t have to. I’m not going to tell anyone what happened with us. It’s not a big deal and I don’t want to think about it anymore. Just, take me off your list of girls whose rooms you sneak into to cheat on your girl, okay? I’ve got too much other shit to worry about…” She was rambling again, but at least she wasn’t spiraling and panicking. </p>
<p>Marcus sat up and looked at her. He hadn’t said anything for a while, he was just staring. Ginny was never going to get used to the intensity of his gaze. She didn’t look away, but it was difficult to bear the weight of his full attention focused to intently on her. He lifted his hand and cupped her jaw, bringing her head forward so he could place a kiss on the top of her forehead.</p>
<p>“That shop assistant is an asshole.” He said slowly, looking into her soul, “Gitten is an asshole.” He stopped and looked at her, gauging to see if she believed the words coming out of his mouth. When he was satisfied that she was paying attention, he continued, “You are too good for anyone in this town.” He leaned his head forward and rested his forehead against hers. Ginny closed her eyes; this felt nice. She was starting to feel calmer, more balanced. Marcus moved his head back and looked her in the eyes. Ginny didn't like the look in his eyes. When he started leaning in as if he were going to kiss her, she leaned back.</p>
<p>"What are you doing? We just decided--" she started, but he cut her off by crushing their lips together. She grabbed his shirt, pulling him towards her and deepening the kiss before she remembered why this was a terrible idea. Marcus didn't seem to get the memo, though, as he simply followed when she tried to move back, ending up with them lying in bed kissing hard. It felt so good, but it was so wrong. Ginny put her hands on his chest and gently pushed him back.</p>
<p>"We can't do this," Ginny started, ready to explain all the reasons this was a bad idea.</p>
<p>"Well, you already took Plan B, right? That lasts for another day at least" were the words that shamelessly came out of Marcus' mouth. Was he serious? He thought she wanted to fuck him after EVERYTHING she had just said? And the only thing that would have stopped her was, what? Contraception?</p>
<p>Ginny was fuming. "Out! Right now, get out!" She had had enough of this idiot and his bullshit. She thought he had been listening to her and that he understood what she had been going through. But he was just sitting and biding his time to make another move? Ugh!! </p>
<p>"Jesus, fine!" he exclaimed as she pushed him out the window and bolted it shut. He had the nerve to look shocked and confused, as if SHE were the insane one. Ginny Miller was never going to understand boys.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0014"><h2>14. Chapter 14</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Oh man, Ginny Miller did not want to go to school. There was not a single person in that place that she wanted to spend time with. Abbie and Nora were dead to her. She needed to talk to Maxine about all the shit she had been putting her through. She felt weird around Hunter because of Gitten, even though it wasn’t his fault at all. She was embarrassed about putting herself in a bad position yesterday and didn’t want to talk to Bracia or her allies about it. She had, stupidly, opened up to Marcus, the little twat, but he was just horny and wanted to cheat on his girlfriend. </p>
<p>Luckily, there was plenty of work for her to distract herself with. She had finished most of the assignments set in the past week, but there was always room for further research. She had barely stepped foot in this school’s library, but she could tell that these rich people would have a substantial library collection. Plan of action decided, Ginny jumped out of bed and got ready for school. She was going to smash every single assignment, and she’d use Harvard referencing for her citations since this school didn’t seem to have a particular policy on references. She made sure to pack her headphones so that she could fully ignore all the bullshit from the outside world. Ready to head out the front door, she was surprised when she saw her mom waiting for her downstairs. Was she in trouble for yesterday?</p>
<p>“Peach, I’m worried about you. This town is havin a real bad effect on you and I don’t want you isolatin yourself.” She spoke in a gentle voice, as if Ginny were a wild rabbit ready to run at the first sign of danger. </p>
<p>“I’m just not used to people being so,” she hesitated, not sure which word best described the people in this town, “involved.” </p>
<p>Georgia sighed, leading Ginny to the living room. They sat down on the couch. “I think we could really have a future in this town, sweetie. Even after what happened yesterday. You handled yourself so well, baby. I’m so proud of you,” she said, wrapping her daughter up in a hug. “I know I can’t understand all of your struggles, and I know there are situations you’ll find yourself in that I’ll never be able to understand, because of other people’s ignorance. But I want to help. I want you to know you always have your momma in your corner.” She wiped her eyes and faced her daughter with a steely look of determination. </p>
<p>“We’re gonna get you through this, and show this town who the Millers really are. That means no hiding away in shame, though, Peach.” At this, she gave Ginny a knowing look and a smile, “I know your usual M.O. and I’m not going to let you get back into bad habits. Those girls yesterday were awful, but I know you’ve got some good friends here.” </p>
<p>Ginny rolled her eyes, ready to argue, but Georgia held her hand up to stop her.</p>
<p>“Before you start, I know it may not seem like it right now, but you have got people on your side. To that end, I’ve decided you need to have something in your life other than your school and your friends.” She held up her hand again, already anticipating a protest from her teenager, “I’ve spoken to Joe and he has agreed to hire you at his restaurant! You’ll be able to earn some money and gain a bit of independence.” She jumped up before Ginny had any time to protest, and started leading her towards the front door with a big smile on her face.</p>
<p>“Your first shift is tomorrow mornin’. Oh! And I’ve signed you up to attend the Sophomore Sleepover at your school as well! Have a good day at school and don’t distance yourself from your friends! Love you, Sweetie! Bye!” And with that, she shut the door behind her stunned daughter. Ginny was already running late and didn’t have time to argue with her mom right now, but there was no way in HELL she was spending an entire night with the sociopaths from her school. The job didn’t sound too bad in comparison, but Sophomore Sleepover was not happening. At all. No way.</p>
<p>-</p>
<p>Despite her mom’s advice, Ginny decided to avoid people as much as she could that day at school. She wasn’t ready to confront Maxine, she didn’t want any more interactions with her friends, she just wanted to get through the day. She was tired of bouncing back and showing people who Ginny Miller was. Ginny Miller was tired. If they didn’t like it, they could go hang.</p>
<p>She was the first person to arrive in the library at lunch time so she had the entire place to herself. She found a secluded table at the back, near a window, and planted her books and bag firmly in the corner. She started working on her assignments and got fully immersed in what she was doing. She had no idea that she had had a table companion for the past half an hour, until she sat up to stretch and let out a yelp of surprise upon seeing someone sitting opposite her. Right, the library was a public space and she couldn’t actually claim an entire table for the entirety of lunch. As she smiled sheepishly to apologise for disturbing her table-mate, she had the awful feeling of recognition as the girl looked up and smiled forgivingly. </p>
<p>“Hey, you’re one of Maxine’s friends, right? I’m Padma. Sorry I didn’t ask to sit at your table. I just love this part of the library and you seemed so focused, I didn’t want to disturb you! I can move if you want?” Her smile was adorable and there was absolutely no way Ginny was going to be rude to this endearing girl after that introduction.</p>
<p>“No, of course! Sorry. I’m Ginny, I moved here just this week and I don’t think I’ll ever get used to living in this town. How do you do it? I’ve seen you around and you always look so confident and happy…” Oops. It’s weird to admit you’ve been watching someone from afar, isn’t it?</p>
<p>If it was weird, Padma didn’t seem bothered by it, she smiled brightly, lighting up her whole face, “You think I look confident and happy?” She let out a tinkling laugh, “This town is really weird. There’s a lot of pressure and I feel like I’m constantly panicking on the inside, so it’s nice to know that it’s not noticeable on the outside!” She blushed and pulled a strand of hair behind her ear while looking down. Clearly she hadn’t meant to share that much information. Ginny could relate. </p>
<p>She smiled and thought about what Padma had just admitted. A week ago, Ginny would have scoffed and claimed that these rich, happy people had no reasons to complain. Living in this town for a week, though. Yeah, she felt the pressure from the competitive peers, the unsupportive teachers, the feeling that everyone is watching and waiting for you to fail. She shrugged, “I completely understand what you mean. There are some positives to living here though!”</p>
<p>Padma looked at her sceptically, “Really? What?”</p>
<p>Ginny leaned in closer and whispered, “We can hide here in the library and no one can find us!” she sat back and giggled with Padma in response to her silly comment. After that, they got back to working in a comfortable silence. Padma was really great and she couldn’t understand why someone would treat her as badly as Marcus seemed to. </p>
<p>At that thought, a feeling of mortification swept through her. She had just been laughing and joking with this girl, knowing full well that she had slept with her boyfriend a few nights ago. What was wrong with her?</p>
<p>In a panic, Ginny started packing up her books, ready to flee from the table. She apologised for making so much noise and was ready to make a hasty retreat when she heard Padma call out, “Hey! It was nice to have someone to sit with while studying. We could do it again some time if you wanted?”</p>
<p>Because, of course, she was kind and sweet and friendly and welcoming towards everyone she came across. Ginny didn’t want to be rude, or lie to the girl, so she just smiled and waved as she began walking away. She wasn’t looking ahead and ran straight into--</p>
<p>“Shit, sorry!” her books were dropped loudly on the floor creating an embarrassing spectacle in the middle of the library. She kept whispering “sorry” as she tried to quietly pick up the books and papers that were scattered on the floor. Could she be kicked out of the library for being a nuisance? She hoped not. She liked it here. Padma could have that particular table, but Ginny was sure she’d be able to find somewhere else to sit. </p>
<p>As she looked up to thank the stranger who was helping her to pick up her books, she froze in shock and sent a quick, panicked look in Padma’s direction. Oh, good. She was busily working at the table, out of view. Marcus Baker was kneeling in front of her, holding one of her books with a self-deprecating smile on his face, “Sorry, I wasn’t looking--”</p>
<p>Ginny snatched her book quickly out of his hand, shoved it in her bag and took a step back. She did not want Padma walking around the corner to see her standing anywhere near her boyfriend. The girl was trusting and kind, but Ginny imagined there was only so much she could ignore. Seeing the way Ginny looked familiarly at her boyfriend would probably raise some suspicions. Ginny muttered a quick ‘thanks’ and walked out of the library, ignoring the hurt look on Marcus’ face. How did this guy manage to sneak around on his girlfriend for so long, anyway? He had absolutely no subtlety. Maybe the library wasn’t such a good place to hide. It seemed that it wasn’t as secluded as she had hoped it would be. </p>
<p>--</p>
<p>She made it the rest of the day without incident. That was, until Maxine found her outside school, ready to head home. She rushed over to Ginny, grabbed her hand, and dragged her around the back of school to an abandoned bike shed. It looked like a great place to murder someone and hide the body.</p>
<p>She started frantically running her hands over Ginny as though she were checking for injuries, and asking her if she were alright. Usually, she would have found this to be cute, but she wasn’t in the mood for cuteness right now. Maxine wasn’t going to get away with treating her like shit just because of one mistake. Ginny grabbed onto her wrists to stop her movements and looked at her expectantly. Maxine looked down and blushed.</p>
<p>“Well?” Ginny prodded after a moment.</p>
<p>“Nora told me about what happened yesterday. I can’t believe those assholes made you go through that! I haven’t spoken to them all day.” Maxine explained with a pleading look in her eyes.</p>
<p>Ginny tilted her head to the side and squinted, “Awww, did they take your little torture session a bit too far? Did Nora show you the video hoping you’d be proud of their work?” she asked with a smile. She was channeling pissed off Georgia, and it felt good.</p>
<p>Maxine looked confused and taken aback. Ginny let go of her hands and took a step back.</p>
<p>“Torture? Ginny? Wha-- I didn’t--”</p>
<p>“Oh, save it!” Ginny interrupted, “I know you’ve been forcing me to spend time with your awful friends because of what happened with Marcus. They have been making me feel so uncomfortable all week, but I thought it would be fine if that would finally make you forgive me! But that shit yesterday?” Ginny took a deep breath and closed her eyes, “I could have been arrested, or killed. You have no idea how scared I was, the entire time. I thought you cared about me..” She trailed off, knowing the tears were flowing freely down her face now. </p>
<p>Maxine moved closer, as if to comfort Ginny, but Ginny didn’t want to be anywhere near her. She didn’t realise that part of what felt so bad was the feeling of betrayal she had had all week. Ginny had confided and shared one of her deepest secrets with Maxine, and Maxine said that she had been forgiven, but she had been punishing her ever since. It wasn’t fair. If she didn’t really forgive Ginny, then she needed to be up front about it. </p>
<p>Maxine’s face was red and blotchy and there were tears streaming down her face. Ginny felt supremely satisfied to know that she was an ugly crier, if nothing else. “Ginny, I swear, I didn’t--”</p>
<p>“You didn’t? You didn’t send me on the shopping trip from hell with your little shoplifter buddies? With a girl so self-obsessed and steeped in white privilege that she tried to get me, a black girl in an unfamiliar area, to steal jewellery with her? Like it was some right of passage? It didn’t seem like it was the first time she had done it, either. Nora wasn’t surprised at all, and she didn’t try to stop her when she challenged me to put those earrings in my pocket. Do you have any idea how bad the situation could have been if I had actually been stupid enough to keep those earrings in my pocket and exit the shop?” Ginny’s voice was getting louder with every question, and by the end, she was practically screaming in Maxine’s face.</p>
<p>Maxine put her hands on either side of Ginny’s face to attempt to calm her down, watching this girl she had grown to care for in such a short amount of time break down right before her eyes. She kissed her forehead and whispered, “Ginny, I swear to you, I did not know what Abbie was going to do.” She tilted Ginny’s face up towards hers so they could look each other in the eye. She begged, “Please, you have to believe me. I would never put you in a harmful situation like that. I haven’t been trying to punish you this week.” A tear slipped down her cheek at the thought that Ginny thought so lowly of her.</p>
<p>Ginny didn’t know what to believe, but it was hard to concentrate when she was so close to Maxine. She felt like she was looking directly into the sun and it was blinding. Oblivious, Maxine continued, “I just knew I would be busy with auditions this week and I didn’t want you sitting in your room alone worrying about things. I’m sorry I got distracted so much at Brody’s. I know we haven’t been spending much time together, but I will get better.” She sniffled and removed her hands from Ginny’s face. Ginny’s head followed her hands briefly, unwilling to let go of the connection, but Max laced their fingers together instead. Ginny looked down at their joined hands, then back up at Max’s face. Her eyes were pleading, begging for forgiveness and Ginny couldn’t resist.</p>
<p>She moved her head slowly towards Max’s, looking for any sign of rejection. She noticed Max’s eyes widening, but she didn’t move away. Ginny closed the distance between them and grabbed the back of Max’s head, immediately deepening their kiss. Her lips were so soft and full. She tasted like berries. Max walked Ginny to the nearest wall, still attached at the lips, and started moving her hips against Ginny’s. Ginny let out a moan and ran her tongue against Maxine’s lips, asking for permission to enter. Maxine pulled back slowly, ending their passionate embrace with a giggle. Ginny smiled and went in to taste her lips again but Max put her hand on her chest to stop her. </p>
<p>Ginny stepped back, horrified. “I’m so sorry, I thought - but it’s- I didn’t mean--”</p>
<p>Max stepped forward and put her hand on Ginny’s lips to stop her, “No, don’t apologise. It’s just. I know you were with my brother, and you’ve been through so much this week. I don’t think now is a good time for you to start experimenting with me on top of all of that.” </p>
<p>Experimenting? Like this was some sort of game? Ginny prepared to correct her, tell her how serious she was with her feelings, but Max continued,</p>
<p>“I mean, you’re a fantastic kisser. Definitely top 3 out of all the people I’ve kissed.” She fanned herself and let out a sigh, “Phew! That was a hot kiss. I hope it means you forgive me now. I want things to go back to how they were before. Please don’t be mad at me for Abbie and Nora! We have to hate them together, it won’t be as fun if you hate me as well. I haven’t even been able to tell you that I got the lead role in the school production! I beat out Riley, can you believe it?” She started doing a celebratory dance that completely eased the tension and made Ginny burst out in laughter. </p>
<p>When she finished laughing, she said with a smile, “Well done! I knew you would do it. Your voice is incredible. Way better than Riley’s” and Max beamed at her in response. She grabbed Ginny’s hand and led her back out to the car park, skipping and twirling all the way. </p>
<p>As they neared Max’s car, she exclaimed loudly, “Now, we’re going to go home and hang out one last time before my life is taken over by rehearsals!” </p>
<p>The drive home was pretty quiet, other than Max singing along to the songs on the radio. Ginny was still trying to figure out if Maxine had rejected her gently because she was grossed out by the fact that Ginny had been with her brother, or if she just hadn’t realised that Ginny had kissed her because of genuine romantic feelings. She didn’t want to break their fragile truce by asking, and she definitely didn’t want to bring up The Incident if she didn’t have to. She guessed she’d just be grateful she had her best friend back. She’d worry about those pesky romantic feelings later. They had their whole lives to figure it out, after all. Feeling more at peace than she had in a long time, Ginny rested her head against the back of her seat and decided to just enjoy the time she got to spend with Max.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0015"><h2>15. Chapter 15</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Sophomore Sleepover. She could not believe she had let her mother and Maxine talk her into attending this ridiculous affair. Max had been so excited about it all week, wanting to coordinate outfits with matching t-shirts. Abbie and Nora had extended an olive branch early in the week, shopping all over town until they had an entire makeup set to suit Ginny’s colouring. Ginny was fairly certain she had more makeup than Georgia now, and it was fun to be all pampered and girly with Abbie and Nora. She was still wary around them. She wouldn’t trust them as far as she could throw an alligator. It was good to let go of the hatred and betrayal anyway, and just be neutral towards them, but she would never be close with them after what they had done to her. </p>
<p>Apparently, being able to spend a night in your high school is a privilege these rich kids would pay an arm and a leg for. It sounded like a waste of time, but Georgia was excited to see Ginny opening up to new people, and Max was bouncing off the walls with excitement. It was infectious. She, Abbie, Nora, and Ginny were wearing matching t-shirts spelling out the word MANG, and they were walking around like they owned the world. Ginny had apparently been fully welcomed into the group after her week of torture, which necessitated changing the group name from MAN to MANG. It was silly and totally immature, but she was happy to be part of something. It was kind of exciting! Even with the bemused reactions of their moms (“What’s Ma-aang?”) they knew they were the baddest bitches walking into Sophomore Sleepover.</p>
<p>And what a sight it was! The school looked nothing like it usually did. There were bright lights and streamers everywhere. As Ginny looked around, she couldn’t believe that this was the same place she came to have her gym lessons and - was that a bounce house? The smell of fun fair confectioneries was everywhere - hot dogs, popcorn, cotton candy. The school had gone all out and she could see why everyone was so excited about it now. </p>
<p>When she spotted Hunter and the Bros, she squealed in excitement and gave him another running hug. It was kind of their thing now, and she kind of loved it. She giggled as he twirled her around, completely oblivious to the shocked looks from their friends, who had no idea the two were close. The whole gang waltzed onto the dance floor, swirling and spinning like drunken acrobats, and generally making themselves look as silly as possible. The atmosphere was so light and happy, they couldn’t help but laugh and sing along badly to songs whose lyrics they didn’t even know. After a quick hot dog break, the girls separated from the boys to check out some of the booths. When they all decided to get an Ariana Grande ponytail, Ginny knew it would be a terrible idea. She knew these rich white people wouldn’t be able to do anything with her hair, but she foolishly allowed them to run their brushes through her hair, turning it into a wild, frizzy mess. She wasn’t going to let it ruin the night, but she needed to find the showers to fix it quickly.</p>
<p>It took her a bit longer to find them because navigating the school at night time was not what she was used to doing. She walked past the exit that led to the outdoor benched area where she opened up to Bracia about her experiences, and she realised that it was filled with warm yellow fairy lights. It looked magical, and amazingly, there was no one out there enjoying it. Making a mental note to head back to that area if she needed to escape the madness, Ginny continued until she found the locker room with showers. She took off her top and headed into the showers, ready to wet her hair and get it back under control, only to stop after seeing someone sitting, fully clothed, on the floor of the showers.</p>
<p>She had forgotten that Max’s mum had forced Marcus to attend this event as well. “Well, don’t you look cheery,” she greeted. She was sick of being mad at Marcus for being a dumb boy. If he wanted to treat his girlfriend like shit, it was none of her business. “What are you doing in here?”</p>
<p>“Riding out this lame sleepover,” he muttered, looking up at her briefly. His eyes were red and and watery; it looked like he had been crying. Or smoking weed. She sniffed the air. Yep, definitely smoking. Great. </p>
<p>“It’s actually pretty fun, you know? My mom forced me to come because she didn’t want me isolating myself but Maxine has made it pretty--” she cut herself off, realising she was about to start rambling about Marcus’ twin sister who was still icing him out. Or was she? She hadn’t really updated Ginny on that whole situation. </p>
<p>“Well, I’m glad you’re having fun with The Bro Squad out there.” He said sarcastically, “Nice hair, by the way.”</p>
<p>Ugh! This is what she gets for trying to be pleasant around him. She should have expected it, but he always riled her up so easily. She couldn’t stop herself from bursting out, “Why is everyone so obsessed with my hair? Worry about your own hair!” She turned off the tap now that she had finished wetting her hair and stomped over to him, messing up his hair and making it fall into his face. Damn, it actually looked better that way. How is that fair?</p>
<p>Still, she had fun mimicking his cool guy act while messing it up, “Ooh, I’m tough and alternative and too cool for fun.” He was so serious all the time. He needed to be silly sometimes too. Maybe she was trying to bring out the silly side in him, or maybe she was just enjoying the night too much to let anything bring her down. Either way, she walked back to the shower, laughing to herself. Sometimes, Ginny Miller was hilarious.</p>
<p>Marcus looked up at her with a raised eyebrow. “Is that your impression of me?” he asked as he started standing up. “It’s all wrong, I’m way more debonair” he was leaning against the wall of the shower, looking calm, cool, and collected as always. He smoothed out his furrowed brows as he looked at Ginny and imitated himself as some kind of suave Cassanova, “I’m too cool for fun.”</p>
<p>Well, at least he was trying. He still didn’t need to look so sexy while he did everything though. Ginny wanted to see him looking ugly and silly, but she’d probably have to work too hard to see those results. Maybe one day.</p>
<p>“Seriously, why aren’t you into this? There’s a freaking bounce house!” He’d definitely look silly on a bounce house, right? Maybe she could convince him to bounce around and make dumb faces. That would be fun. She hadn’t even been on the bounce house yet! Ginny looked back at Marcus and realised that he looked far away as he answered,</p>
<p>“None of my friends are here.” Oh, right. She didn’t really know who is friends were. Did he laugh and joke around with them? Did he make ugly silly faces with them? Would he bounce on the bounce house if they had been here? If Padma were here?</p>
<p>Involuntarily, she blurted out, “Or your girlfriend,” a little bit too sassily to be casual. Well, clearly she was still bitter about that. She was only human after all.</p>
<p>“No, Padma isn’t my girlfriend. I don’t really do girlfriends.” He said it without a single trace of sarcasm or awareness of how douchey that made him sound. Ginny figured the best way to show him how ridiculous he sounded would be to imitate him. Because she was god damned hilarious.</p>
<p>Making a ridiculous ‘cool-guy’ face and pointing her finger guns around, she started mimicking him, “I don’t dooo girlfriends. I’m too cool for commitment.” She laughed to herself but… he didn’t seem amused. Maybe he wasn’t quite ready to make fun of himself yet. He was in a seeerious mood. Too serious for imitations and bounce houses.</p>
<p>Ginny walked over and sat on the floor next to him, encouraging him to sit down as well.</p>
<p>“Well, she’s the only one of your girls that you kiss in public. And you spend more time with her than anyone else. It’s not like you’re going around taking anyone else out on dates.” She said, trying to be serious and sensitive. She was genuinely curious about this.</p>
<p>“I don’t take her on dates either. It’s just- we’re just having fun. It’s nothing serious” he tried to explain, but Ginny was ready to call bullshit.</p>
<p>“No, you’ve been going around with her for a while and there’s clearly some expectation of fidelity. You’re not walking down the hallways holding hands with any of your other - um, conquests. You clearly feel bad about being with other people behind her back and don’t want her to find out about it. It sounds like you’re sending her major mixed messages.” She didn’t mean to get annoyed about this. It was none of her business; it had nothing to do with her. Except that he made it her business when he snuck into her room..</p>
<p>“She knows what to expect with me. She knows I don’t want any kind of commitment,” he rolled his eyes while explaining it, like he had had this conversation multiple times.</p>
<p>“Don’t you care what she wants?” Ginny asked in a quiet voice. This really wasn’t any of her business. “Sorry, you don’t have to answer that. It’s just-- she seems nice and I feel bad, you know? I don’t want her to get hurt and I know, I shouldn’t have been with you if I didn’t want to hurt her but I didn’t really think of her as a real person back then. You know? She was just like this abstract idea. But now…” She let out a huge sigh. She should probably just fix her hair and get back to the party. She still needed to go on that bounce house.</p>
<p>She wasn’t expecting to get any kind of response from Marcus. She was mentally preparing herself for having to get up when he spoke again. Thank God. She did not want to stand up right then. She was tired and her legs hurt.</p>
<p>“I don’t want to hurt her. There’s just too much going on with me and I don’t want her to get invested. In me. I’m not… right.” He looked defeated, like there was so much more to say but he just didn’t see the point. Well, Ginny wasn’t going to push him to talk. </p>
<p>They sat in a comfortable silence for a while.</p>
<p>“Don’t you want to go back to have fun with your friends?” he asked, after a while.</p>
<p>She turned her head and looked at him. “I am having fun,” and she smiled at the look of shock on his face. “Max and her friends can be a bit… much. I like to just be still” she closed her eyes, leaning back against the wall, “and quiet, sometimes. Hunter’s the only one that just lets me be.”</p>
<p>She didn’t see the dark look that crossed his face when she mentioned Hunter, but she could hear it in his voice when he asked, “What do you even see in that guy?” </p>
<p>Still trying to hold onto their peaceful little truce, Ginny kept her eyes closed while she leaned back against the wall, answering without being defensive, “He’s silly and stops me from being too serious. He’s the nicest of Maxine’s friends and I feel good when he’s around. He makes me feel… calm. I need that sometimes.”</p>
<p>She looked over to see the look on his face and smiled, “He’s really not that bad once you get used to the dramatics. That’s just how he breaks the tension.”</p>
<p>Marcus groaned out loud and banged his head on the wall, “Ugh, enough. Please. I’m sorry I asked.” He smiled and looked at her afterwards, to let her know he was teasing, but she was ready to share more. It was too easy to accidentally overshare when Marcus was looking at you like you were the most interesting person around.</p>
<p>“There’s just so much pressure to be perfect all the time, you know? And there are some people who just make you feel worse, and more critical of yourself. They become the voices in your head, telling you all the things you’re doing wrong, and comparing you to everyone else…” she trailed off, realising she wasn’t making any sense. “Sorry, that probably made no sense at all.”</p>
<p>He chuckled, joking, “Voices in your head? You should probably get that looked at,” to try to lighten the mood. She elbowed him in the side for the cheek, but she was glad he was at least listening to her rambling on. </p>
<p>He had that far away look in his eyes again. Like he was remembering something from a long time ago. Perhaps he had already had this conversation repeatedly as well. He turned back to her and caught her staring at him. She blushed and looked away, but it was already too late. </p>
<p>She should be accustomed to his beauty by now, but it was just hard not to stare when the opportunity arose. She looked back at him and realised he was staring at her now, too. She rolled her eyes and smiled. If he thought he’d embarrass her by giving her a taste of her own medicine, he had another thing coming. </p>
<p>As she met his gaze, she didn’t get the feeling that he was trying to embarrass her. It looked like he was trying to memorise her, afraid she’d disappear any second. They leaned forward until their lips met in a gentle kiss. She sighed into it, bringing her hand up to cup his jaw, but he pulled away.</p>
<p>Fuck. Right. Padma. She started to apologise but he was talking before she could.</p>
<p>“My.. uh.” He cleared his throat, looking uncomfortable, but he continued, “My best friend. Died. Last year. He had cancer. I haven’t been… coping. That’s why I just-- I can’t--” he cleared his throat again and looked away.</p>
<p>Ginny’s eyes widened. Did he just say he had a best friend who died because of cancer? Last year?</p>
<p>“You’ve been dealing with that this whole time?” was the first thing that popped out of her mouth. She didn’t mean to sound so incredulous, but it was pretty damned unbelievable. “But people have been treating you like some stoner drop-out instead of someone who’s grieving the loss of someone close to them!?” What the hell? </p>
<p>She got up and started pacing around the shower, getting angrier with every moment. “Your best friend dies, and one year later you’re supposed to be happy, fine, back to normal? No one even talks about it! What kind of town is this? A dead kid should be a big deal! What about your family--” She stopped in her tracks, realising what an insensitive asshole she was being. She smacked her hands over her lips, physically stopping herself from being able to say anymore insulting things.</p>
<p>She kneeled down in front of him, bursting out an apology, “I’m so sorry!” she put her hands on his knees and stared at him wide eyed, “That was tasteless. Obviously, I don’t know what you’ve been going through or how your family have been treating you. I just really wasn’t expecting you to say--”</p>
<p>She was cut off when he let out a laugh (or a sob?), surged forward and kissed her hard on the lips. He held her tightly, like someone was trying to drag her away from him and he had to put up a fight. It didn’t feel great for Ginny, to be honest, but she realised he probably needed some kind of release. She didn’t know how often he got to talk about this hugely traumatic event that had happened to him and a wave of sadness washed through her. How could Maxine treat him so badly when he was in so much pain? She could never imagine treating Austin that way, knowing he was going through something like that. </p>
<p>Ginny pulled back from the kiss and pulled him into a fierce hug. She crushed his head to her chest, allowing him to listen to her heartbeat, and stroked his hair soothingly. She always felt better when her mom held her like that. She let him cry for as long as he needed to. Ginny knew she would have cried every day for much longer than a year if her friend had died. How long did his family allow him to grieve the loss of someone who died way before their time? A month? A year? That was some patriarchal bullshit and it needed to end. Real men cry. How are they supposed to function if they’re not allowed to express their emotions? </p>
<p>When her knees started to hurt from kneeling on the shower floor, she moved into a sitting position against the wall and pulled him down so he was lying with his head in her lap. She continued to stroke his hair and massage his head. His hair was so silky and fine. It was so easy to run her fingers through it; so calming and repetitive, like stroking a kitten. Stroking her hair was like a battle. Against a never ending hoard of knots, reforming within moments of being detangled. Stroking his hair reminded her of the reason she was in here in the first place. She looked at her watch, only just realising she had been in here with him for hours. They could probably sleep here all night. It was nice. Peaceful. </p>
<p>Marcus had stopped crying at some point, and was now just staring into the distance, lost in his thoughts. Ginny was still stroking his hair, contemplating shaving it off to make a wig for herself. She really, really, really liked his hair. Life was just unfair. Her eyes widened, realising what she had just thought. Thank God she hadn’t said it out loud. Hair troubles were definitely nowhere near as unfair as losing your best friend to cancer. Jesus Christ, how was this boy still getting out of bed every morning?</p>
<p>“I dream about him sometimes. Just… memories. It’s nothing weird or fantastical but-” he started to drift off momentarily, then shook himself as if he were trying to shake off a bad thought or feeling, “It’s like, my mind forgets he’s gone. And it just feels so normal for the whole dream, apart from this nagging feeling at the back of my mind that something’s not right.” </p>
<p>His voice was quiet and airy, like he didn’t even realise he was speaking out loud. As though this were the first time he had been able to verbalise this experience, “And then I wake up, and I’m ready to message him and tell him about a hilarious dream I had about him. Then it’s like” he took a deep breath and sat up, looking into Ginny’s eyes. </p>
<p>She had tears streaming down her face and snot running down her nose onto her lip. She couldn’t imagine how awful it would be to lose someone so close to you, and she didn’t care that she was ugly crying right now. He was ugly crying, too. He tried to smile, but it looked so sad and broken, it just made her cry even harder.</p>
<p>“It’s like finding out all over again,” he continued, desperate to get these thoughts off his chest. “The whole day, I’m walking around in a daze, because I thought my best friend was alive, only to have him taken away from me when I woke up and remembered. But no one wants to hear about it. Everyone just expects me to move on and forget about it…” he trailed off, looking around self-consciously.</p>
<p>“That’s… fucking. Bullshit” Ginny said, sniffling and gasping between tears. It shocked Marcus into laughing, which set her off, too. </p>
<p>They sat there laughing, covered in tears, until they heard someone bursting into the room. It sounded like a girl was crying and someone was trying to comfort her. It seemed they had started a popular new trend of crying in the showers. She smiled conspiratorially at Marcus who seemed to be having the same thought. Her smile dropped when she recognised the voices. It was her mom and Maxine. </p>
<p>Why was Maxine crying?</p>
<p>“Love is many things, Maxine. Safe isn’t one of them,” she could hear her mom advising her best friend. Love? Had Max told Georgia about their kiss? She shot a guilty look at Marcus. They weren’t together or anything, but it was probably bad form to kiss someone’s twin sister after sleeping with him. </p>
<p>“Now, go out there and have fun! Ignore Riley. Indifference is the best revenge,” -- Riley? Had Maxine made a move on Riley? They really needed to talk. She had no idea that Max was so serious about Riley. Ginny hoped that her mom would follow Maxine out of the room so she could collect herself before returning to the sleepover. But of course, nothing gets past Georgia.</p>
<p>When Ginny emerged from the showers, Georgia took one look at her hair, the red eyes and the tears running down her face, and assumed that Ginny had been in here crying over her hair disaster this whole time. She engulfed her daughter in a hug and set off to fixing her hair immediately. Ginny was enjoying the one on one time with her mom, until--</p>
<p>“So, I know you probably overheard the conversation I had with Maxine, honey,” Georgia began, and Ginny suddenly remembered that Marcus was just on the other side of a wall. This was NOT the time for this conversation.</p>
<p>“Mom, please, can we talk about this another time?” she pleaded, but Georgia was relentless.</p>
<p>“No, Peach. I know how you feel about that girl and I don’t want you confusin’ her any more than she already is. She thinks herself in love with that Riley girl, and if you go in there now confessin’ your feelins to try to make her feel better, it’ll just end in heartbreak for everyone. Give her some time is all I’m sayin’.” </p>
<p>“I have no intention of talking to Maxine about my feelings. At all, ever. Definitely not tonight.” Ginny mumbled, she was starting to get irritated now. She wanted this conversation to end, now.</p>
<p>“Aw, sweetie, don’t be like that. I know how you feel about her, but Maxine doesn’t. It’s not her fault, ok?” At Ginny’s refusal to talk, Georgia decided to continue, “It’s not about Marcus is it? Because I’m sure--”</p>
<p>Ginny stood up abruptly to end that line of conversation immediately. “Well! This hair looks so much better now, mom. I’m just going to spend a few minutes freshening up now and then I’ll return to the party. Okay? Thanks, Mom! Love you, bye!” she jumped up and pushed her mom towards the doors. Once they were closed, she leaned against them, sliding down to the floor and putting her head in her hands. Maybe Marcus hadn’t heard any of that conversation? </p>
<p>A pair of men’s boots appeared in front of her. Ginny looked up to see Marcus standing in front of her with an amused expression and a raised eyebrow. He sat down next to her, facing her with a teasing smile.</p>
<p>“Where to even begin?”</p>
<p>She groaned and banged her head against the door, repeatedly, hoping to inspire sudden memory loss or a personality transplant. “It’s been a long night. We’ve already had so many revelations. Can we please just… be?” she asked, desperately.</p>
<p>Marcus looked at her and sighed. He gave her a small smile and simply said, “Okay.”</p>
<p>Ginny couldn’t believe her luck. “Okay? Really?” she was delighted. “So you won’t ask me about anything you just heard?”</p>
<p>Marcus chuckled at her antics but humoured her, “Yep.”</p>
<p>“Ever?” Ginny knew she was pushing it, but it was worth the risk to avoid some damned uncomfortable conversations.</p>
<p>“For tonight, at least.” He seemed amused. Not angry or tired or hurt. </p>
<p>“Can I get that in writing? And notarized?” she asked eagerly, with a teasing smile.</p>
<p>He squinted and looked up, as if seriously contemplating the question. “No.”</p>
<p>“How about a pinky promise?” She held out her pinky and plastered the most angelic look she could muster onto her face.</p>
<p>Marcus let out a long-suffering sigh, as though he couldn’t believe he had to put up with this for another moment, then grumbled, “Fine.” He linked their pinkies together and ignored Ginny’s satisfied smirk. She closed her eyes and rested her head against the door, keeping their entwined hands on her lap. She rested her head on his shoulder and let out a deep sigh.</p>
<p>“Do not fall asleep on me here. I mean it,” he grumbled, still sore over having to pinky promise this ridiculous girl not to ask about her weird conversation with her mother. </p>
<p>She nuzzled closer to him and wrapped her arm around his torso, “Too late, too comfy,” she sighed and snuggled closer. Marcus rolled his eyes and put his arm around her shoulders, letting her rest more comfortably on his chest. There were worse places to nap, he supposed.</p>
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<a name="section0016"><h2>16. Chapter 16</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Waking up the next morning was not as awkward as Ginny expected. For a skinny guy, Marcus wasn’t too uncomfortable to sleep on. He didn’t snore or move around too much in the night. Ginny wasn’t even certain that he slept at all. When she woke up, he had been staring into space and stroking her hair. It had been so soothing, she almost didn’t want to open her eyes; but there had been a ray of sunshine shining directly into her eyes, making it impossible to stay asleep. </p>
<p>She smiled up at him, “What time is it?” she asked with a yawn and a stretch. </p>
<p>He looked at his phone and responded, “8:14. We have about half an hour until it’s time to go.”</p>
<p>He wasn’t looking at her while he spoke, but he still had his arm around her and was lightly stroking the tops of her arms. It was giving Ginny goosebumps and making her feel more flushed at their proximity. The conversation last night had been so heavy that she hadn’t been interested in doing anything physical at all. Now, after a couple hours of napping and touching and stroking, she was starting to feel randy and she needed to get away from Marcus before she did something stupid. They finally seemed to be in a good place and she felt like she really understood him. She didn’t want to screw it up by confusing that closeness for anything romantic. She understood more about what he was going through now and she didn’t want to add any extra complications to his already stressful life. </p>
<p>Maybe one day they’d be able to be friends, but for now she needed to put some distance between them. Physically.</p>
<p>His stroking rose up to her neck and the feather-light touches were really starting to affect her. She closed her eyes and tried her best not to let out any noises to give away how good she was feeling. </p>
<p>Marcus was still staring into space, unaware of the effect his touches were having on Ginny. Sophomore Sleepover was a real test for him. He and Mike had really been looking forward to it last year. They had planned all the teachers’ classrooms that they were going to trash. Pranks and mischief were the aim of the night. Their whole group was going to run riot, booby-trapping the classrooms and leaving nasty surprises for their worst teachers. They even planned to stink bomb Gitten’s classroom. It was supposed to be the perfect revenge against all the teachers who had been assholes to them since they were Freshmen. But now…</p>
<p>No one wanted to do it without Mike there. They didn’t mention it. It was an unspoken agreement that it just wouldn’t be the same without him. He had thought the night would have been absolute torture - on his own, with nothing to distract him from the fact that the night would have been so different had Mike been around.</p>
<p>His thoughts ran over the night, considering everything that he had shared. Most of it for the first time. Even in therapy, he had never felt so comfortable to share his thoughts, so free from judgement. He could never have expected Ginny’s reaction to finding out about Mike. Seeing her so alight with anger - on his behalf! - made him feel… alive. Seen. He hadn’t even felt anger in such a long time. He had been going through the motions, numb to everything for so long. Dragged down by the pointlessness of life - why was he alive when Mike was dead? He hadn’t thought to question how anyone else reacted to his grief; he just knew that there was something wrong and he wasn’t dealing with it how he was supposed to. No one would tell him how he was supposed to react when his best friend died, but he knew there was something wrong with his way. </p>
<p>Seeing Ginny getting so mad she couldn’t even sit still - it sparked something in Marcus. Something he hadn’t felt in so long. At first it felt like anger and frustration. He grabbed her and poured all that anger into her, thinking it would finally be the thing that scared her away. But she just - let him. And the way she held him was so gentle, firm, loving, caring - he didn’t know. When the anger left him, he felt lighter, hopeful maybe? Maybe there wasn’t something wrong with him at the core. Maybe he was still grieving and it was ok to not feel normal yet. </p>
<p>His thoughts were brought back to the present when he felt Ginny shifting next to him. She seemed to be rocking her hips slightly and clenching her thighs, rubbing them together with her eyes closed. His hand was tangled in the hairs at the top of her neck. Clearly he had been playing in her hair - he couldn’t resist it. It looked so wild and free, yet was so soft to touch. </p>
<p>With her sitting so close to him, eyes closed, he felt he could finally just look at her. Really look at her, without worrying about seeming like a creepy stalker. He was mesmerised by the freckles on her cute little nose. The way she scrunched her nose when she disapproved of or was confused by something he said. The way she looked down and away whenever he said something complimentary, like she couldn’t even imagine it to be true. </p>
<p>Without realising it, he had resumed stroking the base of her neck. Her breathing got heavier and she let out a sigh, leaning into his touch. That was when Marcus realised the way she was rocking her hips. Was she - getting off to his touch? He pressed harder to test it, rubbing firm circles into the bottom of her neck. She let out a deep breath and bit her lip, hard, trying not to make a sound. Her eyes were scrunched and her eyebrows furrowed as though she were confused but trying to find the answer to a challenging question. She was definitely getting off right now, and Marcus could tell she was close. Just from his touches. His cock was hard and straining in his pants. He couldn’t believe this girl. He gripped the hair at the back of her neck and held it tightly, pulling her attention to him.</p>
<p>Ginny was just about ready to explode. She didn’t know how she had let things get this far. It seemed so innocent at first, his soothing touch had felt so relaxing. She had squeezed her thighs together to move into a more comfortable position, but the feeling it elicited distracted her from everything else. When she started slowly rocking her hips along to his strokes, she became lost to everything but the sensations coursing through her body. It wasn’t until Marcus gripped her hair firmly that she remembered where she was and why she needed to stop.</p>
<p>It was too late though. She looked at him, wide-eyed - he was looking at her with a ravenous expression. He had clearly figured out what she was doing in response to his touches and he didn’t look like he was going to let her go without a fight. </p>
<p>They couldn’t keep doing this though! She refused to be a part of his destructive tendencies anymore. Now that she knew the root cause of his pain, she wasn’t going to let him bury his feelings with sex as he seemed to be doing at every chance he got.</p>
<p>He was staring at her lips, preparing to dive in and claim them as his. She had to stop him now, before they did anything truly awful. She put her hand on his chest.</p>
<p>“We can’t, Marcus. This isn’t right - it’s not going to help. You can’t just bury your pain with sex.” She tried to explain it as delicately as she could. She didn’t want him to feel ashamed of the way he was coping, but he had to know she wasn’t going to be a part of it anymore. “This reckless behaviour, sneaking into girls’ rooms and having unprotected sex - it’s not going to end well. Please, just…” she trailed off. She wasn’t sure what she wanted him to do, actually. She wasn’t trying to lecture him or tell him how to live his life. </p>
<p>They were so close, she would barely have to move to press their lips together. She could barely breathe without their chests touching. His hand was still in her hair and his other arm was wrapped around her as they kneeled facing each other. </p>
<p>She swallowed. Hard. Looking him in the eye, she whispered, “I can’t help you in this way. I’m not going to be a part of your self-destruction.” He was looking so deeply into her eyes, she felt like he was trying to communicate so much without saying a word. His gaze shifted to her lips again and he looked tempted to lean forward. </p>
<p>She pushed him back gently. He sat back, defeated.</p>
<p>“We should go back to the hall with everyone else. They’ll get the wrong idea if they find us here like this,” she continued and she started to get up. She offered him a hand to help him get up. He reached up and took it with a dry smile. </p>
<p>They stood facing each other, neither one wanting to move. He was so tall, she had to tilt her head almost all the way back to look him in the eye. He naturally started to lean towards her again, resting his hand on her hip. She sighed and look up at him, trying to fight back a smile. He couldn’t help himself, he just oozed sexuality, even when he was just standing still. </p>
<p>Ginny cleared her throat, trying to remain cool and collected. “Well, um. Thanks for letting me hide out in here with you. It was fun getting to know you a bit more. Just… talking and stuff. It was nice, and I feel like I’m starting to understand things a bit better now.” </p>
<p>And now she was just stalling. They needed to get out of there. She grabbed his hand and opened the door, “Come on! Let’s get out of here!”</p>
<p>They walked down the hallways in companionable silence. After a while, Ginny realised they were still holding hands. She separated them quickly, blushing furiously and apologising under her breath. He still had a far away look in his eyes, and Ginny could only imagine how hard it would be to walk down the hallways that reminded you of your dead best friend every day. Georgia would definitely have moved them to a new state if she had a dead best friend. </p>
<p>Outside was busy. There were food stalls with burritos and sandwiches and groups of students everywhere, reliving the best moments of the night. When Ginny turned to ask Marcus if he had spotted either of their moms, she realised that he had disappeared into the crowd somewhere. Probably getting a burrito. She was looking around for a familiar face when she was enveloped in a big bear hug from behind.</p>
<p>“Ginny Miller, where the hell have you been?! We lost you on the bounce house!” yelled Hunter after he put her back on the ground.</p>
<p>“Awwww man! You guys went on the bounce house without me?!” she whined in response. She couldn’t believe she missed her chance to go on a bounce house for the first time. She had to demand one for her next birthday. Mature or not, she needed to get on one of those god damned things.</p>
<p>“You weren’t on there with us? What happened to you?” He suddenly looked concerned, only just realising how long she had been missing for.</p>
<p>“I had to go deal with some girly issues then fell asleep in the locker rooms” she explained, hoping that that sounded plausible.</p>
<p>“Yikes!” Hunter gasped and took a step back, as though she were contagious. She laughed, walking close to him and hitting him on the arm.</p>
<p>“Not my period, you idiot!” She yelled, chasing him as he started running away from her abuse. As she was laughing and chasing him, she caught of Maxine, who looked like she was crying, sitting between Nora and Abbie. </p>
<p>She rushed over to them, kneeling on the grass in front of Maxine, who was in the middle of telling them all about how she admitted her feelings to Riley only to be completely rejected by the girl who seemingly had no idea that she was leading Max on the whole time.</p>
<p>“That’s such bullshit, Maxine! I’m so sorry you had to go through that. She was definitely leading you on that whole time,” she exclaimed when Max was finished telling her story. She wrapped her up in a hug, glad that her mom had already warned her about how Max was doing. </p>
<p>As she held her crying best friend, stroking her hair, she started considering her realisation that she hadn’t been mooning after Maxine as much, ever since their ill-fated kiss at the abandoned bike shed. The rejection had been painful and confusing at first. She hadn’t really explained her feelings verbally - she had thought she had put enough of her feelings into that kiss - but the rejection still stung at first. Perhaps she was finally making peace with the idea that her best friend would never see her that way. Or maybe learning more about Marcus had helped her to realise that Maxine wasn’t the perfect ball of positivity that she seemed to be. Either way, Ginny was feeling optimistic that her crush on the Baker twins was slowly waning into nothingness. </p>
<p>Just as she had come to that realisation, Hunter approached the group, asking if he could talk to Ginny alone. She smiled and handed Maxine over to Nora and followed Hunter a few steps away from the bench they were all sitting at.</p>
<p>“I’m going to have to put a tracker on you, Ginny Miller. I looked away for 2 seconds and you completely disappeared!” he yelled and wailed, clutching at his imaginary pearls like some poor damsel who had been left at the altar. A real Southern Belle, that one. Ginny couldn’t help but laugh at his antics.</p>
<p>“You saw what I was dealing with! I saw Maxine and I had to go run and save her. She needed me far more than you needed to be punched. Or do you disagree?” She asked, clenching her fist and raising it, ready to strike.</p>
<p>“Alright, Arya Stark, put that away.” He responded, warily, putting his hand on her fist to get it away from his poor face. “I was just meaning to ask if you wanted to come see our band rehearsing next week! We have Battle of the Bands coming up and we need as many opinions on our songs as we can get. You’re into music, right?” His hand was on the back of his neck, a sure sign that he was nervous. Ginny knew how much his music and his band meant to him and she was touched that he wanted her opinion on his song choices.</p>
<p>“Hell yeah, that sounds awesome!” She replied enthusiastically, trying to portray how happy she was to support his musical ambitions. “I’ll be your number one fan. Shall I make posters? Shirts? Customised bras with the band’s picture on the cups??”</p>
<p>He laughed, clearly relieved and started trying to put her into a headlock. Ginny started whacking him, complaining about manhandling delicate goods, until he relented and started walking them back to the rest of the group. His arm was still around her shoulders when they arrived, which prompted pointed looks from Abbie and Nora.</p>
<p>“What was that about?” Abbie asked with a hint of suspicion in her voice.</p>
<p>Hunter beat her to replying, stating casually, “Oh, nothing much. Just extending an invitation to watch rehearsals for 3SB’s number one fan,” with a smile, poking Ginny in the side. Ginny wriggled away from the tickling sensation, and went back to join the girls on the bench, rubbing Maxine’s shoulder in commiseration. </p>
<p>She smiled up at Hunter, “I can’t wait! Really - I’m sure you guys will be amazing. See you next week!”</p>
<p>As soon as he left, the others turned to her as one, staring at her expectantly.</p>
<p>“What?” she asked, confused.</p>
<p>“Band practice is for girlfriends only. They’re usually super secretive about their rehearsals. Do you have something to tell us about you and Hunter?” Nora seemed really excited by the prospect.</p>
<p>“Um… He’s a really good friend and I like hanging out with him?” Ginny responded honestly. “Really, I think I’m going to take a break from all things romantic until I’m like… 30. Too much drama,” she blurted, trying not to make eye contact with Maxine. Things were still a bit awkward between them. </p>
<p>Yep, she was definitely avoiding all things romance related. She was going to spend some quality time getting to know her vibrator instead. They still had plenty of unfinished business and she was finally ready to try it out again.</p>
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<a name="section0017"><h2>17. Chapter 17</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>So, I turned off comments because I was worried you would have a bad reaction to the story. </p><p>But now I'm feeling insecure about it and I need some feedback. What do you like about it? Is anyone actually reading this? I'm seeing a lot of hits and not a lot of kudos. Does that mean people are reading it and hating it? Or is it just a few people reading it a lot? </p><p>Please put me out of my misery here, I'm dying!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>When Ginny got home and sat on her comfy bed inside her nice, warm house, the exhaustion from Sophomore Sleepover finally hit her. Who the hell thought it would be a good idea to sleep on the locker room floor all night? Her bum and lower back were killing her now. Is this what it felt like to be old? Ginny did not like it one bit. Maybe she’d start being nicer to Georgia when she complained about the aging process.</p><p>After a 2-hour nap, she woke up to her phone alarm. There was no point sleeping all day and then staying up all night. She had school tomorrow and there was no way Georgia would let her get away with skipping school because she fucked up her sleep schedule. She looked at her phone--</p><p>Oh shit. 8 new messages. 3 missed calls. What could she have missed in a 2-hour nap?! All three missed calls were from Maxine. She checked the messages.</p><p>Maxine:<br/>So, my brother just came into my room and started an actual conversation?<br/>Like? <br/>With words?!<br/>He asked for your number and I gave it to him.<br/>WHAT IS HAPPENING?<br/>He’s gonna message you. I’M SORRYYYYYY.<br/>Don’t be mad. This is big for him. I know he’s an ass but please be nice.</p><p>Ok, so that explained all the messages. They all seemed to be from Maxine. Ginny couldn’t believe that the Baker twins were finally seeming to be reunited. They had had an actual conversation? Ginny couldn’t help but wonder how long it had been since they had had a conversation with any real meaning. How long Marcus had been shutting himself away from everyone. Maybe now that he had started opening up, it would be easier for him to keep talking. Like pringles. Once you pop, you can’t stop! Ugh. That was terrible.</p><p>She’d need to call Maxine at some point, just to find out what the hell had happened. First, she just HAD to read the message from Marcus. She opened it up and was… disappointed. “Hey, I got your number from Maxine,” was all it said. Fine, she’d call Max to get more details.</p><p>She picked up the phone immediately, “WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN?! Major developments at the Baker household and you’re MISSING IT!”</p><p>“How do you have so much energy? I just had a 2 hour nap and I want at least another 2…” Ginny replied with a yawn. “What’s happening?”</p><p>Maxine took a deep breath and Ginny could tell that she was going to start talking for a very long time. “Marcus. He just like, came into my room and sat down, didn’t say any mean shit or anything. He just sat there, and I was like ‘what the hell? Why are you in my room?’ and he just apologised? For literally everything he has ever done. Then he told me all about how he was dreading Sophomore Sleepover because of some crazy shit that happened with his friends. It was like a real conversation with a human person. I was SO proud of him. He said like 80 words all at once.”</p><p>Ginny was trying to process everything that Max was saying, but she was talking so fast and it didn’t sound like it was super coherent. She just let her continue undisturbed.</p><p>“And then he asked for your number and I was like ‘literally, never. That will never happen,’ but then he said he wanted to apologise, like he’s on some kind of 12 step program and I was totally here for it, so I gave it to him but then I thought I probably should have asked you first so then I tried to call and you didn’t pick up and that’s my story of today!”</p><p>She took a deep breath when she was done and sighed, relieved to have said everything she had intended to. </p><p>“That sounds… good? I don’t think I need an apology at this point but I’ll take it?” Ginny wasn’t really sure what her role in all this was supposed to be. She’d forgiven Marcus for being a dumb boy ages ago. There was definitely no need to apologise after everything he had shared last night. She totally got it. He was going through some shit.</p><p>Maxine let out a huge sigh, “Thank you so much! You have no idea. He’s been going through a lot and like he just kept getting worse and worse and worse and like, I was seriously worried that he was going to do some real shady shit and end up dead so. If he’s trying to get off that path of straight up evil, I just don’t want anything to stop him. I know he was so awful to you and he doesn’t deserve your forgiveness but--”</p><p>“No, don’t be silly! I forgave him ages ago. He was just being a dumb boy. I don’t want to torture him for one mistake. I’m just glad we can put it all behind us and move on now,” Ginny responded. “How are you feeling, with Riley and everything?”</p><p>“UGHHHH don’t even get me started. Like. Talking to my brother has majorly put those things into perspective, you know? Like, yeah, I put myself out there and got rejected but it’s not the end of the world, right? I’m healthy and I’m happy and I have my friends and family so I should totally be more grateful but like… it’s gonna suck for a while. She was soooo hot. UGH” Well, Maxine certainly sounded much cheerier about the situation. That was good.</p><p>“She wasn’t even that hot. You are way out of her league,” she replied, glad that she could talk about this with Maxine without feeling that stabbing pain in her chest. She had come so far in these last few weeks. All mature and shit, feeling happy for her friends even though she might be in love with them. </p><p>“You have to say that. You’re my friend,” she sighed. Ginny wasn’t even going to begin to go there right now. “Okay, I’ve gotta go. Thank you so much. I owe you big time!”</p><p>Ginny stared at her phone, wondering how she was supposed to respond to Marcus’ bland AF message. She started typing and pressed send.</p><p>GM: Are you stalking me, neighbour?</p><p>She got a response almost immediately. It seemed as though he had been waiting for it pretty eagerly.</p><p>MB: Wasn’t that my line?</p><p>Ginny smiled. They really had come so far since then. He had seemed so mysterious to her, like this untouchable enigma. Now she just saw him as he was: a lonely, broody, dumb boy. Who was going through some shit beyond belief.</p><p>GM: Yeah, but I wasn’t actually stalking you. You on the other hand…</p><p>MB: How dare you. I would never.</p><p>GM: You literally snuck into my room. Through my window. Twice.</p><p>MB: … Your point?</p><p>GM: I was sleeping the second time!!</p><p>MB: Yeah, but, Disney teaches us that that is romantic. </p><p>GM: Disney is fucked up.</p><p>MB: Fair. Ok. </p><p>Ginny looked at her phone in confusion. This didn’t seem like an important enough conversation to warrant Marcus asking his sister for her number. His sister who had not spoken to him for weeks. Maybe he just wanted to make amends with Maxine and saw this as a way to secure his forgiveness? It would make sense, considering that Ginny was the reason Maxine wasn’t speaking to him. Although, he shouldn’t have known that that was the reason Maxine wasn’t speaking to him - unless she told him that she knew during their conversation? </p><p>Damn. That would mean that Marcus knew she blabbed almost immediately after it happened. Just as Ginny was getting ready to go downstairs and start looking for something to eat, another message appeared on her phone.</p><p>MB: Look, I just wanted to say thank you. For staying with me last night. And the talk. It’s been difficult but… it helped.</p><p>Ginny hesitated after reading the message. He hadn’t spoken much this morning, and she had assumed that he felt embarrassed about opening up to her. It meant a lot that he went to all this effort to get her number so he could thank her.</p><p>GM: Thanks. I was happy to talk to you. I’m sorry you’ve been going through so much shit. I’m here if you need anything.</p><p>GM: Non-sexual. No homo.</p><p>She couldn’t stop herself from adding that last bit. It was just getting a bit too heavy for her and she needed to lighten the mood somehow. </p><p>MB: Oh damn. Never mind then.</p><p>GM: Ha. Ha.</p><p>MB: So.. You were with Hunter this morning. How’s that going?</p><p>GM: You sure like to talk about Hunter a lot. Want me to set you up?</p><p>MB: Forget it.</p><p>GM: Nooo! It’s cute. He will be so flattered.</p><p>MB: You are the worst.</p><p>GM: I’ll put in a good word for you.</p><p>She got up and stretched, ready to go hunting for some food. Looking out the window, she could see Marcus sitting at his desk in his room, smiling at his phone. He looked up and met her gaze, almost as if he knew she was there the whole time. Her phone buzzed.</p><p>MB: Take a picture, it’ll last longer.</p><p>She glared out her window and stuck her middle finger up at him, walking out of her room to head downstairs. That boy was absolutely ridiculous. She had not been staring at him per se, she was just looking out her window and he happened to be there. After going downstairs to get a snack, she returned upstairs and glanced out of her window, only to find him standing, topless by his window. He seemed to be facing his mirror and flexing his muscles. That had to be staged though, right? He knew she could see him from her room.</p><p>GM: Practising for the body building competition?</p><p>MB: No, just trying to figure out which angle you’d like to admire me from most…</p><p>GM: ..Wooowwww. Okay! What did you decide? Let’s have the full show then.</p><p>She didn’t really expect him to turn and face the window and start performing a ridiculous Gun Show to her from across the street. And yet, that was exactly what he started doing. He looked like the most ridiculous human being on the planet, flexing these non-existent muscles and making Hulk faces. Giggling, relieved that he was willing to be silly sometimes, she picked up her phone ready to message him again.</p><p>GM: You know, I always imagined what Slenderman would look like shirtless…</p><p>MB: 1. Ew. 2. Rude!</p><p>GM: I’m sorry. I’ve just never seen something so pale and slender before :P</p><p>MB: Ouch. No more free shows for you.</p><p>GM: Nooo, I’m kidding. I just… didn’t know how to process all that pure animal magnetism!</p><p>MB: I’m blocking you now. You are blocked from my window.</p><p>GM: No, please! I’m sorry. How can I make it up to you? You have a lovely body, really!</p><p>MB: Nope! I am emotionally scarred forever. Your patriarchal views of how muscly a man’s body should be have imprinted themselves on me forever. I’m going to join the gym and a sports team and the Bro Squad now.</p><p>Oh shit. She hadn’t thought about it like that. Had she been perpetuating toxic masculinity by shaming him for his lack of well-defined muscle? It had been tongue in cheek, but she couldn’t believe that she had participated in body shaming! There were so many other jokes she could have made about him being topless at his window, like him scaring all the people in the streets. But she went straight for ridiculing his body - which, she had to admit, was a pretty spectacular bod. </p><p>GM: You know you’ve got a banging bod, don’t even try to deny it.</p><p>MB: My fragile male ego will never recover from this…</p><p>GM: Come on! You wouldn’t have so many girls lining up to sleep with you if you weren’t at least somewhat appealing</p><p>MB: Where will I ever find enough protein shakes and steroids to give me the muscles I need??</p><p>GM: You’re the worst. I’m sorryyyyyy. I’ll never disparage your beautiful body again. </p><p>MB: The shame… The horror! </p><p>Ginny let out a sigh and flopped onto her bed. How did she miss the signs that Marcus was an absolute drama queen?! He seemed so laid back and cool in person, but his inner monologue was clearly a sassy teenage diva. There was only one way to combat it.</p><p>GM: What if I let you make fun of my body?</p><p>This was risky. She wasn’t sure if it was territory they should even be crossing into. She had managed to maintain a friendly atmosphere with him from the distance created by texting. Body image issues, and conversations about physical appearance could lead to… less friendly topics.</p><p>His response was almost immediate.</p><p>MB: I’m listening.</p><p>Of course THAT got his attention. The absolute perve.</p><p>GM: Well, I mean. You showed me yours so I suppose it’s only fair that I show you mine…</p><p>Ginny was really playing with fire now. She couldn’t believe she was being so brazen. She was not supposed to be flirting with him and offering to take her top off for him. She needed to keep that kind of thing separate from him. And remember that he had a girlfriend - even if he didn’t call her that.</p><p>His response took much longer this time. She noticed he started typing and then stopped. He was probably trying to think of a polite way to decline her offer. She hadn’t meant it in such a bad way! She just wanted to… She didn’t know what she had wanted to do. Now she was dreading his response. Oh, God, no. He was typing again. She had to respond before he did.</p><p>GM: I mean, my biceps are fairly impressive. I could share my workout routine and diet plans if you need somewhere to get started…</p><p>There. That was nice and safe. </p><p>He stopped typing. Maybe she shouldn’t be messaging him at all. They clearly needed to establish some boundaries if they were going to stay in contact with each other. </p><p>MB: Oh, this I HAVE to see.</p><p>He wanted a gun show, did he? She rolled up the sleeves on her top, all the way up past her shoulders, then went to stand by her window. She could see him standing there again, with a top on this time. He had his arms folded, waiting to be impressed.</p><p>She lifted her arms in a strong man pose and made a fierce angry face, to assert her dominance and display how powerful and manly she was. Then, she brought her arm forward and kissed her biceps one by one, then raised both her eyebrows in an overly suggestive way. She wasn’t sure how much he would be able to read her expression from across the street, but she made sure she looked like an absolute idiot.</p><p>He smiled and shook his head, leaning against his window as he looked at his phone again.</p><p>MB: Very impressive.</p><p>Ginny did a dramatic bow and then did a little curtsy in his direction. She then clasped her hands together and held them over her head, celebrating her fantastic win of their body building competition.</p><p>GM: My swans are sick, indeed. Don’t worry, one day, you too can achieve this perfect vision of physical perfection. </p><p>Feeling that the conversation had come to a natural end, Ginny put her phone in her pocket and found something to watch on TV to kill some time. As she got comfy in bed, selecting the best season of The Office to start watching (definitely season 4, purely for the Dinner Party episode); she received a new message from her new bestie. </p><p>MB: Watcha watching?</p><p>GM: Dude. Boundaries! How do you even know I’m watching TV? I’m not near the window.</p><p>MB: The TV gives off a certain glow. It’s fairly obvious to anyone with basic stalking skills.</p><p>GM: Do you keep a notebook documenting my movements? Are we Charlie and The Waitress?</p><p>MB: Pfff, you wish you could be The Waitress. You’re definitely a Frank.</p><p>GM: Joke’s on you. Frank is the sexiest character by far. </p><p>MB: Mmmm, especially when he covered himself in antibacterial gel and shaved all his hair.</p><p>Ginny burst out laughing. This conversation was making her want to watch Always Sunny, but she had already started one of her favourite episodes of The Office! She’d watch some Sunny later. </p><p>MB: So really, what are you watching? I’m bored. Don’t wanna get high.</p><p>GM: You wouldn’t understand. It’s a secret.</p><p>She cackled after she sent the message because Michael had literally just said that line, as she was watching it. She wondered how she could work, “I DECLARE - BANKRUPTCY!!!!” into a conversation without anyone noticing. Wait, did he just say he didn’t want to get high? That was a pretty big deal, right?</p><p>MB: Aw, come on. Don’t be so secretive.</p><p>GM: No, that was a hint about which episode I’m watching! It’s The Office, duh. </p><p>MB: Oh, sorry. I never watched that show. Is it any good?</p><p>Ginny’s eyes widened. What in the cultural wasteland of the world was he saying? Never watched The Office? Or even heard about how good it is? She responded before she had even thought it through.</p><p>GM: Get over here. IMMEDIATELY. Or you must never speak to me again.</p><p>Oh man, she wasn’t going to get to watch the rest of the episode before he got to her room. She wouldn’t see Michael’s declaration of bankruptcy! Unless.. No, she couldn’t let him start watching from Season 4, there would be too many spoilers. He needed to feel all the Jim and Pam angst that she had to go through. </p><p>What if he didn’t like the show? She had heard about uncultured swines who thought it was “boring”. How they thought that, she’d never know. If he was one of those assholes, that would be the end of their friendship. No discussion.</p><p>After a few minutes without a response, she started thinking that he wouldn’t be coming over anyway, so she wouldn’t have to worry about missing her favourite parts of the show. She’d definitely make it to Dinner Party before she got to sleep, and that was the real prize. Still, she kept an ear out for the doorbell, just in case.</p><p>Michael was just starting to talk to Kevin about making bets when she heard a tapping at her window. Oh come on! She was so close. Why did he never use the door? </p><p>She walked slowly to the window, still hoping she’d make it to the end of the episode. No, she wasn’t even close. Michael was just scrunching up a dollar bill to prove he didn’t have money problems. She laughed and paused the show. She would just watch it after showing Marcus the first few episodes. </p><p>She opened her window to let him in. “I invited you over. You didn’t have to climb up the side of the building to enter through my window. Are you just so used to sneaking into girls’ rooms that you don’t remember how to use a front door?”</p><p>He jumped in with a charming smile, ruffling his hair. God damn, it was so easy to forget how sexy he was when they were texting. She looked away and flushed, realising what a bad idea it was to have him in her room, alone. </p><p>“Wow, I came here for a good time and now I just feel so attacked” he deadpanned. His voice was so deep and husky, it sent a shiver through her body. Yeah, this was definitely a bad idea. She cleared her throat.</p><p>“Well, I just can’t seem to resist bruising your fragile male ego,” she replied with a casual shrug. Now that she was looking around her room, she realised this was a terrible place to watch The Office with someone you were incredibly attracted to but not allowed to be with. The chair in her room was covered in a mixture of clean and dirty laundry, leaving only the bed as a decent seating option. </p><p>This was going to be way worse than that first Biology lesson she shared with Maxine. Maybe she could sit on the floor and let him sit on the bed without seeming like a weirdo?</p><p>“So,” he started, looking around and probably coming to the same conclusion as Ginny, “The Office?”</p><p>Ah yes. Back to the problem at hand. “Have you really never watched The Office or heard anything about it?” she asked, genuinely curious about how this could have occurred. </p><p>“That show ended like 10 years ago. I wasn’t going to watch a show about offices when I was five of my own choice.” he responded with a raised eyebrow. </p><p>Fair point. She cleared her throat again. Wow, it was suddenly really hot in her room. She was sweating and seriously regretting inviting him over without tidying up a bit first. </p><p>“Alright, well. Before I show this to you, I need to warn you of a few things. First of all, the first season is based on the UK version which was super cringe, so the dynamic is a bit different from the rest of the seasons. It’s still good, but it gets even better” she explained, leading him to sit on her bed so she could present the information while standing in front of him. </p><p>He nodded, so she continued, “Second, the humour in this show is very subtle, and it’s more about Sensible Chuckles than laugh out loud hysterics. So you have to pay attention to what they’re saying.” He seemed to be listening to her tirade so far.</p><p>“Finally, if you don’t immediately fall in love with this show, you must leave my life now and never return. No pressure,” she finished off, getting ready to start the show again from season one. </p><p>“Wow,” he sighed, leaning back on the bed so he was sitting up against the head rest, “So, if I want to be free of you, all I have to do is dislike this show, huh?”</p><p>Ginny was still standing awkwardly trying to decide where to sit when she replied, “That would be a lot more hurtful if you hadn’t climbed a wall to enter my room through my window… three times.” </p><p>“Hey, you invited me over this time, so that doesn’t count.” He responded, raising his hands in the air. When he noticed her standing awkwardly by the TV, he gestured for her to join him on the bed - scooting over and patting the seat next to him. </p><p>She hesitated, “Um, I think I just want to sit on the floor. The view is really good from there…” she started, trying to be convincing, “That’s where I always sit when I watch TV.”</p><p>He simply raised his eyebrow, not deigning to dignify that bullshit with a response. Okay, fair enough. Ginny smiled sheepishly, not wanting to give up without a fight.</p><p>He let out a long-suffering sigh, “Ginny, I don’t want you to feel uncomfortable. If you don’t want me here, I can go watch it on my own at home. No hard feelings.” He started to get up from the bed with a small smile, trying to show that he really didn’t want her to feel bad. That only made her feel worse.</p><p>“No, it’s not that I’m uncomfortable, it’s just…” She stopped for a moment trying to figure out the right way to phrase her thoughts, “I don’t want us to do something we would regret later. You know?” </p><p>“Like ruin our budding friendship because I don’t like your favourite show?” He responded cheekily, moving to stand way too close to her. She had to look up so high to meet his eyes when he stood so close to her. Why did he love crowding into people’s personal space so much? </p><p>She chuckled nervously, “Yes. Exactly. It will be difficult to concentrate on how good the show is if we’re sitting in,” she cleared her throat, “on the bed. So close and--”</p><p>He cut her off, “I’ll keep my hands to myself, I promise. I really want to watch The Office now, nothing else,” his words and tone of voice were convincing, but he was already standing with one hand on her hip and the other playing in her hair. Against her better judgement, she decided to trust him.</p><p>He actually kept to his word while they watched the first episode. He seemed to be engrossed in the show and kept his hands to himself for the most part. Ginny couldn’t help sneaking looks at him at all the funny bits to see if he was watching and enjoying it. She thought she was being subtle about it until they reached the part where they started making all the Jell-O puns and he sighed,</p><p>“You can’t keep watching me. You’re distracting me from all the good bits!”</p><p>Oops. “What? I don’t know what you mean. I’m just enjoying watching my favourite show with my new favourite person!” she exclaimed innocently. </p><p>“You look at me before all the jokes, so I know something is about to happen and then I’m really aware of my reaction so I end up missing the joke! Keep your eyes on the screen, missy.” </p><p>She had to physically restrain herself from looking at him when she knew Roy was coming to collect Pam from work. Her self-restraint paid off when he suddenly exclaimed,</p><p>“What?! I thought the receptionist was dating the Jell-O guy! She has a fiance??” Oh, the sweet innocence of season 1. He was hooked, she could tell. Welcome to the new world order, kid. </p><p>She smiled smugly in response without spoiling anything. The next few hours were incredible. Watching her favourite show with someone who had never seen it before was like experiencing it for the first time all over again. The pure discomfort when watching Diversity Day for the first time; the absolute cringey hilarity of the Basketball episode. It made all the jokes seem so much funnier, having a fresh pair of eyes. </p><p>Sitting there, watching TV with Marcus and giggling together; Ginny finally felt that they could really be friends without all the romantic tension and angst. As long as she didn’t look at him, or stand in front of him while talking to him, they’d be fine. </p><p>Of course, Ginny only thought that because she didn’t see the way Marcus looked at her during the cute scenes between Jim and Pam. In Marcus’ mind, he was finally starting to realise the depth of his feelings for the girl sitting in his arms. He was only just realising the damage he had done to her opinion of him and how much hard work it would be to convince her that he could be worthy of her time and affection.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0018"><h2>18. Chapter 18</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Some information about me: I'm black and British. So a lot of my experiences with the police and people in positions of authority are based on what it's like to grow up as a black person in London. </p>
<p>That said, I also worry that I'm using a lot of British terminology that no one in America would use and that it's completely off-putting. Are there any words or phrases that just don't make sense to you as an American reader?</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Ginny had so much to do today. Gitten was starting to bang on about some essay competition that they needed to start thinking about, she had History and Chemistry assignments due at the end of the week, and she was trying to support Hunter while he prepared for Battle of the Bands. </p>
<p>Dude was a total mess, all nerves and hysteria. He needed to chill the eff out if he wanted to perform with any kind of artistry but he was majorly overthinking things. He changed which song he wanted the band to perform constantly and it was clearly eating him up inside. Especially now that Jordan had had to drop out of 3SB. That was probably the thread that snapped his hold on mental stability, to be honest. That’s when all the outbursts had started. Ginny was thinking about all of this while rummaging through her locker for her Chemistry book. She hoped that band practice wouldn’t be a total disaster tonight. She didn’t think she could handle any more of Hunter’s hissy fits without throwing something at him.</p>
<p>“I just don’t get it. Why would Pam stay with Roy when she clearly has nothing in common with him?” she heard from behind her. She smiled without turning around, knowing exactly who was behind her. Where the hell was her Chemistry book? She hadn’t left it at home had she?</p>
<p>“What, she was supposed to leave her partner of 5 years because she has a coworker she can laugh and joke with? Be real. No one makes rash decisions like that,” she responded. She hated how people judged Pam for staying with her fiancee even though she enjoyed spending time with her male coworker.</p>
<p>“Well yeah, but she clearly didn’t even like being around her fiancee. She would be so much happier if she were with Jim,” he argued back, as though he knew so much about the inner workings of these characters after watching the first couple seasons, once. Oh please.</p>
<p>“How do you know that? We never see them interacting at home or when they go out alone. We only see them when they’ve finished work and they’re tired. Roy works in the warehouse, doing physical labour. He’s probably excited to go home and take a warm bath and doesn’t want to be delayed,” she started, knowing it was a bit of a stretch. The point about him being tired was probably legit though.</p>
<p>Giving up on her Chemistry book and closing her locker, she continued, “They wouldn’t be together for so long if there was nothing between them. Maybe their differences are what makes them work, and he balances her out a bit. Stop shaming Pam just because she won’t turn her life upside down to get with some guy she sees at work everyday. Just because they flirt and have some kind of attraction between them, it doesn’t mean that they would work as a couple… She might be afraid that he wouldn’t be able to commit to her or be loyal to her in the way that she needs…” she started to trail off, wondering if she was still talking about The Office or if she was talking about something else now.</p>
<p>She made the mistake of looking up at Marcus and instantly regretted it. He was standing much closer to her than she was expecting. His arm was above her head on the locker next to hers, creating a protective barrier between her and the rest of the hallway. He was looking at her as though she were a mystical riddle that he needed to solve. He also looked a bit insulted. Clearly, he had read the subtext of her words as well. Oops. </p>
<p>He smiled in that self-deprecating way that made her insides clench. He didn’t respond for a moment, just looked into her eyes, as though deciding where he wanted to take the conversation. </p>
<p>“Or maybe Roy just has a giant cock and she didn’t want to risk Jim having a tiny weiner,” he responded, chuckling to himself and stepping back.</p>
<p>Ginny rolled her eyes at his antics and hit his chest. Honestly, boys. Before they could start walking to their next class, they were joined by her favourite walking disaster. He flopped against her locker dramatically and let out a huge sigh.</p>
<p>“Tonight is going to be a disaster, Ginny! I give up. Don’t even bother coming to support us. You can forget about the shirts and bras, no one will want to buy our failure merchandise!” he exclaimed sensationally, placing his hands over his eyes.</p>
<p>This would have been a comical sight, had it not been the third outburst of the day. Ginny looked apologetically at Marcus, knowing they wouldn’t be able to finish talking while she had to deal with this human hurricane. He chuckled halfheartedly and waved, leaving her alone with the disaster.</p>
<p>Ginny put her hand on Hunter’s chest to try to calm him down. She spoke in a patient, calming tone of voice, doing her best not to set him off. “Tonight is not going to be a disaster. You and the band will practise all of your songs and you will not leave until you have decided which song to perform. I will never stop my merchandising, because it’s going to make me rich and famous as the band’s biggest fan. Repeat it.”</p>
<p>Hunter opened his eyes, looking genuinely terrified and almost defeated. </p>
<p>“I said, repeat it! We’ll take it sentence by sentence. Repeat after me: tonight is not going to be a disaster,” she said, trying to get some enthusiasm out of him.</p>
<p>He rolled his eyes at her efforts, the asshole, and muttered dutifully, “Tonight is not going to be a disaster.” </p>
<p>She smiled, encouraged, and continued, “The band will practise EVERY song we know,” a bit more energetically.</p>
<p>“The band will practise every song we know,” he repeated, starting to seem more like his usual self.</p>
<p>“We will NOT leave until we have decided which song to perform” she continued, and he repeated it even more enthusiastically, finally starting to see what a genius Ginny Miller could be.</p>
<p>“And Ginny will become rich and famous by hanging onto my coat tails” she ended with an innocent smile. He burst out laughing and grabbed her hands, swirling her around in the middle of the corridor. Jesus Christ, this guy’s moods were unstable. At least she had managed to cheer him up this time.</p>
<p>“Now, go do some learning. Do not think about Battle of the Bands again until it’s time for band practice.” She tried to shoo him off to his next lesson before remembering that they had Chemistry together next. And she needed to sit next to him so they could share his textbook. </p>
<p>-</p>
<p>Marcus was sitting at the back of the Chemistry classroom when he saw Ginny entering with her boyfriend. He had no idea why it bothered him so much, seeing them together. They were never flaunting their relationship with any overt PDAs, but the way they talked and joked as though no one else existed was even worse. </p>
<p>Clearly, whatever disaster had almost ruined their romantic plans for the night had been resolved. They walked in, hand-in-hand, laughing and smiling as though nothing else mattered but their happiness. He hated seeing them together. He bet they hadn’t even noticed that he was in half of their classes with them. They were just so absorbed in each other. Whatever, he had to stop thinking about it. He wasn’t getting anywhere with Ginny and Chemistry was his best subject. </p>
<p>His thoughts travelled back to the conversation they had just had by the lockers. He hadn’t meant to compare Ginny’s relationship with Hunter to the one in their show. He was just genuinely frustrated with the characters. It was so obvious that Jim and Pam belonged together! They always made each other feel better, even if one of them was having a bad day. And Pam always told Jim how she couldn’t share her thoughts and feelings with Roy, but she COULD share them with Jim. How could anyone argue against it? </p>
<p>Apparently, all that wasn’t enough for Ginny Miller. She was judging their potential to be together based on his treatment of Padma. That was a totally different situation, though. Padma was the one who approached him for a no-strings-attached situation. He had been going through such a dark time, after losing Mike. It had seemed like a good idea at the time. She had said, repeatedly, that she didn’t want anything from him. She just needed someone to hang out with without all the expectations of being Perfect Padma, and she knew he didn’t care about any of that shit. They barely ever spoke. They just made out and got high together. </p>
<p>How was it his fault if she wanted something different now? She never even spoke to him about it. Whenever they were alone, she was happy to get high and make out. They never went further than that. There wasn’t any need. They were just killing time together. She never brought it up in conversation unless there were other people around. It was almost like she was hoping he’d be peer pressured into having something more, without ever having to have a conversation with him about what she wanted. Fuck that shit. He was starting to get more stressed out by the situation than it was worth. He could get high by himself, and he didn’t need to make out with anyone. He’d just get high and watch The Office instead.</p>
<p>Except, now he found himself relating a bit too much to the main character - pining away after his perfect girl, knowing that she was in a committed relationship with someone who had more of a hold over her than he did. He didn’t want her to get hurt or cause any drama for her. He just wanted a chance to prove that he could be better. He could be the loyal, committed guy for her, but she’d never see him as anything other than some misogynistic womaniser. Maybe she was right to stay with Hunter. It was definitely a more rational decision - he would probably have ended up fucking her up anyway. He could be her loyal, committed friend instead of her boyfriend. He’d just be happy to be in her life. It would hurt like hell, but it was the best he could hope for. He could be a friend, a buddy, a pal. That would be easy. Right?</p>
<p>-</p>
<p>Ginny Miller deserved a god damned medal for getting through that Chemistry lesson without hurling a textbook at her desk mate. He had seemed to be in positive spirits for the first 10 minutes of the lesson, and was actually making notes. At some point, his thoughts started spiraling into chaos and terror about the band again. She tried to get him to repeat her mantra from earlier, but he just kept frantically whispering to her everything he knew about all the other bands entering the competition. He was rattling off their success stats and information about their fan base under his breath throughout the lesson. She could tell, because she had heard him yelling about it multiple times in the last week.</p>
<p>She was starting to regret agreeing to be his emotional support blanket. She just knew how bad it was to let those worries take over and she never wanted anyone else to have to experience it alone. So, she had told him to share all his worries with her, with the promise that she would be patient with him and try to talk him down. She’d had no idea what she had signed herself up for. Poor Hunter was an absolute walking panic attack. She had no idea how he had survived this long without his heart giving out. It was good for him to be able to express his worries verbally, but she was going to straight up kill him with no remorse if this kept going any longer.</p>
<p>She had to hold the band hostage tonight. No one was leaving until Hunter felt better. She didn’t even know who they were replacing Jordan with, but he had better be ready for a long night. Why couldn’t Jordan’s mom have decided to make him leave the band AFTER Battle of the Bands? Sure, it would seriously take his time and energy away from studying, but it was just one more week. He’d be able to catch up. It was too late for all that now. She would just have to make sure that the band addressed every single one of Hunter’s worries before the night ended. Once they had a solid plan, he’d feel better. It was just the uncertainty that was killing him. She was sure of it.</p>
<p>With that new resolve, she marched out of the Chemistry lesson, ready to avoid Hunter until they could get it all sorted out. He was a big boy, he’d be able to get through the rest of the day without her. She hoped. </p>
<p>Unfortunately for her, she had been marching pretty forcefully without looking where she was going, and she collided with someone else while heading out of the classroom. She hadn’t even realised there was anyone else in the room while she was packing away. So lost in her thoughts and plans, she had just assumed that everyone else had rushed out to lunch. Apologising profusely, she started to pick up the folders and papers scattered on the floor; shocked to see that the victim of her clumsiness was apparently the top performing student in their class. She handed him back his papers, including the last test on which he scored 103%, and apologised again before heading back out the classroom.</p>
<p>It wasn’t until she heard a familiar voice calling her back that she realised who she had been talking to.</p>
<p>“Where’s the fire? We can walk to lunch together if you want,” came the smooth voice of her ridiculous crush. It took her a few moments to process the information being presented to her. She blinked. Twice. Had he been in her Chemistry class the entire year? </p>
<p>“Where.. You-- Chemistry??” she spluttered, her mind still not catching up to what she was experiencing.</p>
<p>“Oh, yeah. I was wondering how long it would take you to realise I’m in your AP Chem class. I’m also in your Maths, Biology, and Home Ec classes. Just so you know, for future reference,” he responded with a smirk, clearly enjoying himself.</p>
<p>“I thought you said you weren’t in any AP classes?” she hit back, finally catching up to the conversation.</p>
<p>“Nah, I said I wasn’t in 7 AP classes. I am in 4 though, making me a problem child with no ambition.” He shrugged as he said it, but it was clearly something that pissed him off. He started walking in the direction of the lunch hall and Ginny followed, practically having to jog to keep up with him.</p>
<p>She grabbed him to try to slow him down. “You scored 103% in the Chemistry test. I barely scraped an A; it was not an easy test. How does anyone think you’re a problem child? Just because you’re not a big English lover, your successes aren’t worth anything?” Ginny Miller was ready to start kicking asses and taking names. How dare they belittle his successes just because they were more focused on a few really difficult subjects rather than a huge variety of easier ones! Who were the assholes spilling these awful thoughts into this boy’s mind?</p>
<p>She hadn’t realised she had stormed off in the direction of the lunch hall until he pulled her back by her arm, saying, “Slow down there. Easy, tiger. There’s no one specific for you to go find and beat up, it’s just the general attitude around here. I mean, you must have seen the pressure these parents are all putting their kids under..” he trailed off thinking of how Padma needed some way to relieve pressure so much, she went and befriended the school loser. </p>
<p>Ginny looked into his eyes and recognised the deep sadness lingering there. Now that she knew what he had been going through last year, that expression was so much more upsetting to her. Who knew what kind of horrors he was reliving when he got lost in his thoughts like that.</p>
<p>She put her hand on his cheek, trying to bring his attention back to the present. “I just hate seeing you belittle yourself because some other assholes are putting pressure on you to be someone you’re not. I know you say you don’t care about it, but it clearly upsets you even a little,” she pleaded, looking into his eyes. “You can be honest with me. If you want.” </p>
<p>His eyes focused on her lips while she spoke and it took every bit of effort to restrain himself from pulling her to him and crushing their lips together. He couldn’t resist her when she was so angry on his behalf. She looked like an angry little kitten, spitting fire and ready to slash anyone who looked threatening. All that fury and righteousness, just for him. He didn’t deserve it though. And he didn’t deserve her. </p>
<p>It didn’t stop him from holding her tightly and responding, “You couldn’t handle my honesty, Princess.” It was a little too close to the truth for comfort, but there was something about looking into her eyes that made him want to open up his heart and spill out all his secrets. </p>
<p>She raised an eyebrow at his term of endearment and stepped back, suddenly aware that they were in the middle of a hallway and his girlfriend could walk around the corner any moment. She looked around to make sure no one had seen their moment, then grabbed his hand and started walking to the lunch hall. </p>
<p>“You’re probably right,” she sighed after a while, “Who knows what depraved, messed up thoughts are hiding in your little head,” she finished with a smirk. She chanced a look up at him and saw that he had a mischievous look on his face. That probably meant trouble. She let go of his hand and sprinted down the corridor, trying to get away from him before he could enact his revenge. </p>
<p>He caught up with her just as she was about to turn the corner and find somewhere to hide. In his haste to catch her, he accidentally ended up throwing her against the wall once he had her in his arms. </p>
<p>He pressed her further against the wall, both of them still panting from the exertion of running in the hallways. Ginny couldn’t deny the sudden burst of heat she felt flowing through her body at the position they were in together. She was sure she could feel something hard poking into her thigh as well. She wasn’t the only one affected by their proximity. When she looked up at him, she had to bite her lip to hold back a moan. He had pure fire in his eyes, and he looked like he was just moments away from fucking her against this wall. In the middle of the school day. When anyone could stumble upon them. </p>
<p>She was so tired of fighting her urges. She wasn’t the one with a girlfriend, but she was always the one having to bring them both to their senses. Just once, she wanted to be able to just let go and do what she wanted. </p>
<p>It wasn’t right, though. It was so wrong. Padma deserved way better than this. Ginny deserved way better than this. Marcus couldn’t just go around messing with people’s feelings and getting whatever he wanted from them. Even if she wanted it badly, too. If he couldn’t stop with the touches and the stares and the… feelings, they wouldn’t be able to spend time together. She was done with this bullshit.</p>
<p>Her eyes hardened and she pushed him back. “No. I deserve better than this. We can’t keep going around, doing whatever we want regardless of who we hurt. Padma doesn’t deserve to be treated like this. You can’t keep collecting us like we’re toys here for your amusement. I want to be your friend, but if we can’t have boundaries, then…”</p>
<p>She pushed past him and walked away. She was sick of feeling like some kind of whore for being so attracted to him. He clearly didn’t care about anyone other than himself. Who knew how many other girls he was getting off with in dark corners of the school. He was probably much better at all this secrecy and sneaking around than she would ever be. She’d never be able to trust someone like that.</p>
<p>Always wondering where they are or who they’re with. Worrying about what you’d find on their phone if you looked through their messages. She’d rather be alone than deal with that bullshit. Ginny Miller was no one’s side piece. </p>
<p>-</p>
<p>They were three hours into band practice and they were still no closer to choosing a song than they had been at the beginning. The problem had been that Padma’s voice added this magical, mystical quality to all of their songs, making it hard to decide which one showcased all of their talents the best. The way she sang reminded Ginny of the elves in Lothlorien - so calming, yet otherworldly. When Padma hit those high notes, Ginny literally had goosebumps running all up and down her body. Magical.</p>
<p>“It HAS to be Adderall Brains!” exclaimed Hunter for the millionth time. Pres made some snarky comment about the name and Ginny was THIS CLOSE to losing it and kicking him out. She had no idea why he was there in the first place. He was making everything a hundred percent worse with all his snide remarks, but she didn’t need to add any hysteria to the night. </p>
<p>“Padma’s range is pretty incredible in that song,” agreed Brody. Padma seemed to be embarrassed by the praise and added no further comment.</p>
<p>“The song gave me goosebumps all over. It was incredible, even it I couldn’t relate to what it was about, it made me feel so many things” offered Ginny, hoping that would be the end of it and they’d stick with Adderall Brains. </p>
<p>Hunter let out a groan, complaining, “Ginny’s right! It’s got a good message but no one can relate. They won’t understand what it’s about. We need something more marketable, that people will be able to relate to no matter what. No one’s gonna want to sing about drugs!” He flopped against the couch, defeated. </p>
<p>“That wasn’t my point at all. It’s a beautiful and haunting song and it spoke to me even though I’ve never been in that situation,” Ginny replied in her calming, patient voice.</p>
<p>“Ugh, no one cares about a message at Battle of the Bands. They just want to be entertained,” Preston interjected. </p>
<p>Huh.</p>
<p>He actually had a good point. Ginny hated to agree with him, but he was right, so she chose to stay quiet instead of actually voicing her agreement.</p>
<p>“What about a love song?” Padma chimed in, looking embarrassed for suggesting such a thing. “I’ve been working on something, lately. It’s not finished, I haven’t even got all the lyrics for it. It’s just the chorus and a verse, so far,” she elaborated, not making eye contact with anyone.</p>
<p>Ginny suddenly felt super awkward being in the room. No doubt, it was going to be in some way related to Marcus and Ginny wanted to just hide in the couch cushions to avoid this awful situation. </p>
<p>Unfortunately, this was the only thing that seemed to interest Hunter. “Yes! Yes, people LOVE love. It wouldn’t even matter if the song was shit - no offence, Padma, I’m sure it’s great - because everyone loves to be able to sing along to something catchy and romantic. That’s what we’ve been missing with 3SB so far! We never do love songs!” He jumped up and walked straight over to Padma, lifting her up and spinning her around then kissing her on the head once he put her down. </p>
<p>Glad to see things were finally looking better for Hunter and the band, Ginny decided to call it a night once they decided to try to complete their love song. She felt so good about herself at that moment. Her friend had come to her with a crisis and she had helped him to get through it. She hadn’t thrown anything at him or threatened him with physical danger. Hopefully, focusing everything on this love song would help to ease his anxieties leading up to Battle of the Bands. If not, Ginny was moving to Guatemala and starting a new life.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0019"><h2>19. Chapter 19</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>You may notice that I have no impulse control. I might write 3 chapters in a day, and in that case, I will post all the chapters on that same day.</p>
<p>A lot of authors have a schedule and are really organised. This is my first fic. Imma post the chapters as I write.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>She was ignoring his messages. He had fucked up, again, and now she wouldn’t even look at him. He had known that she was with Hunter and that she deserved to be with someone who wouldn’t just mess up her life constantly. He was a walking disaster; everything he touched turned to shit. Hunter was everything he wasn’t: cheerful, devoted, top student in every class. She had the perfect boyfriend and Marcus was just getting in the way. He knew that.</p>
<p>He knew it. And he’d told himself he’d just be her friend. But he couldn’t fucking control himself for one minute in her presence and now she was avoiding him. He couldn’t stop thinking about all the ways he had hurt her already. She deserved so much better than him. He was just like Jim, selfishly fucking everything up for his girl when she had a great thing going - but Ginny was stronger than Pam. She knew he was toxic and shouldn’t even be allowed to breathe near a girl like her. He wanted to prove that he could be a good friend to her and he had fucked up within the first five minutes. </p>
<p>She thought so little of him. She mentioned that he was collecting girls? Like he had a whole harem of people lining up to be with him? He was struggling enough having feelings for just one girl, how the hell was he supposed to have time to find other girls to collect? And who would want to be with him? She couldn’t possibly think he would be able to pull that off. He spent all of his time, constantly aware of her presence. His eyes naturally sought out hers when he was in the same space as her. </p>
<p>He noticed all her facial expressions and could read her body language like a book. He could tell that she absolutely adored Hunter and loved being around him; that she got flustered when his sister was around and couldn’t take her eyes off her for a moment. He knew she couldn’t stand Hunter’s Bro Squad, and that Abbie and Nora made her feel uncomfortable. She always made herself physically small when they were around, like she was trying to escape their presence. He always wanted to run in and save her when he saw them approaching, but he knew she wouldn’t want that extra attention, so he just observed from afar, trying to give her silent support when he could.</p>
<p>Did she think he did that for everyone he met? That he gave a fuck about any of the other success-driven sociopaths in this school? They didn’t care about anything but getting ahead, and they would gladly use any weaknesses against a person, whether they needed to or not. They all gladly kicked him when he was down, caring nothing for the pain he was enduring when his best friend… He just knew they weren’t good people. Even Padma had taken advantage of the situation in some way, offering him a way to feel good but expecting so much more from him than he was able to give.</p>
<p>He was just so tired. All these thoughts, all these emotions. He didn’t want them anymore. He was going to get high and forget about everything. He wouldn’t stop until he felt better. </p>
<p>-</p>
<p>“’Come hang out at my place tonight’ she says, ‘it will be fun,’ she says” Ginny mimicked, muttering under her breath as she stormed towards Maxine’s house after school. “But she didn’t mention that Abbie and Nora would be there too,” she fumed as she prepared for an evening of awkwardness. Sure, she didn’t hate Abbie and Nora anymore, but they still made her feel like an outsider who didn’t belong. Abbie still made weird, snide comments, and constantly tried to change the topic of conversation whenever Ginny was speaking. Nora was alright, but she was always with Abbie, and never said anything against her to stop her from being such a bitch. The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing, after all. So, Nora wasn’t exactly her favourite person ever.</p>
<p>And now, she was wasting a perfectly good evening spending time with them. Max had definitely known that Ginny wouldn’t have come if she had known that Abbie and Nora would be there. She had waited until Ginny told her she was leaving her house to mention that they were all waiting for her in her room. The sneaky bitch. There was no way that Ginny could come up with some kind of emergency reason to cancel in the 2 minutes it took to cross the road and walk through the Bakers’ house. </p>
<p>Though her crush on Maxine was waning, moments like this, where she could see the devious side that Max hid from the rest of the world, reminded her why she loved the girl so much. It was starting to become a more friendly love though. Like, she’d still definitely be up for it if Maxine wanted anything to do with her romantically, but she was also happy to just be friends. Best friends. With some benefits if she could get some. Man, she really needed to stop being such a horndog.</p>
<p>You could imagine Ginny’s shock, then, when she walked into Maxine’s room, only to be bombarded by the sounds of erotic screaming coming from the laptop speakers. They were watching porn!! Together! Well, hello there. Perhaps this evening wouldn’t be a total waste. </p>
<p>With a big grin on her face, Ginny snuck into the room and waited until she was very close to Max’s ear to whisper, “Well, I see you started the party without me,” as seductively as she could. She was just trying to be a bit silly and maybe make her jump. It worked perfectly.</p>
<p>They all screamed and jumped away from the laptop at once. They had been so entranced in what they were watching that they hadn’t noticed her coming into the room at all. Brilliant. Ginny sat on the bed, looking at them expectantly, waiting for an explanation.</p>
<p>Of course, Abbie was the one to ever so tactfully explain the situation, “Max’s in love with Sophie Sanchez because she’s been messaging her constantly for the past week, so she was freaking out about being a virgin so…” she trailed off pointing to the screen.</p>
<p>Ah, that made sense, Ginny supposed. Except… “That looks like terrible studio porn!! That’s not what lesbians actually do, right? Surely, I mean, look how long and sharp those girls’ nails are!” she exclaimed, encouraging them to press play so they could keep watching and critiquing the show.</p>
<p>The poor girls on screen looked like they were trying to pretend they were having the best time. They were covered in baby oil and moaning like they were receiving the most pleasure ever, “But there’s not even a plot,” Ginny continued, incredulous, “Did I miss the beginning where they explained why these girls are so horny they’re going at it in the living room?” she wondered out loud.</p>
<p>“No, there wasn’t even any foreplay,” Nora responded with a smirk. “They just went straight into it and started going at it hard!” She laughed, imitating with her hands how the actresses were behaving on screen. They all burst out laughing as one of the women let out a scream or pleasure/pain. God, those nails must have been scratching the shit out of her insides. Ginny shuddered.</p>
<p>“Is sex usually so fast?” Abbie asked, disgust and confusion evident in her voice. Ah, so Abbie was still a virgin. Ginny didn’t know why, but she was shocked by that information. Abbie was hot and didn’t seem like she’d have a problem finding guys or girls who would kill to be with her. Ginny would probably have wanted to hit that, if Abbie were not such a monumental bitch to her all the time.</p>
<p>Nora let out a tinkling laugh and replied, “Only if you hate orgasms,” reminding them all that she was in a steady relationship with someone who would gladly give her orgasms whenever she wanted them. Life was so unfair sometimes.</p>
<p>Ginny joined in, “I mean, seriously, it’s no wonder guys have no clue what they’re doing. Look at that! These women are clearly pretending to be enjoying themselves, but it looks physically painful to anyone who actually has a vagina. If there are guys watching this, thinking that this will pleasure their women, someone’s going to end up hurt. Or faking a lot of orgasms. It’s such bullshit! Women shouldn’t be forced to pretend to be enjoying things when they’re not.” Wow. She hadn’t meant for it to be a rant, but her voice had gotten pretty loud as she became more passionate about these porn stars who were perpetuating the idea that women had to pretend to be enjoying things that they clearly weren’t. </p>
<p>There was a silent pause after she finished before the others started laughing.</p>
<p>“I guess things aren’t great in the bedroom for you and Hunter,” snarked Abbie. Ginny rolled her eyes, sick of the rhetoric that she had to be romantically involved with Hunter just because she liked hanging out with him.</p>
<p>“What’s that supposed to mean, Abbie? Have I ever, even once, stated that Hunter and I are in a romantic relationship?” She asked, irritated at having to defend herself like this.</p>
<p>“Well, you two are so cute together and you do spend a lot of time with him. We’ve seen how you look at each other when you’re together. He makes you laugh all the time,” pleaded Nora, trying to diffuse the situation while also sticking up for Abbie.</p>
<p>“Well, shit Nora. I didn’t know that laughing was a precursor to sex. I’ve been laughing non-stop since I came here. Are we all having an orgy after this?” Ginny snarked back, starting to get really pissed off.</p>
<p>Maxine, who had been suspiciously quiet since Ginny had arrived, chose this moment to speak up. “Guys, back the fuck off her. Hunter is hilarious and larger than life. It doesn’t mean that everyone who talks to him wants to bang him. They’re just friends. This is supposed to be about me and Sophie! We need to find a better porno to watch!” she whined, bringing the conversation back to a safer topic. </p>
<p>Ginny was still feeling sore about having to defend her friendships, but she was incredibly grateful to Maxine for the topic change. She was clearly really worried about the technicalities of lesbian sex and Ginny wanted to make her feel better.</p>
<p>They tried searching new items in the porn search bar to see if there was anything that would give them some actual pleasure on screen. They searched for real lesbians, lesbian couples, girlfriends, eating out, pleasure - anything that would encourage videos with real pleasure. The only things they were seeing in the studio pornos were long, fake nails, baby oil, and screaming women. </p>
<p>“We need to stop searching for studio porn,” sighed Nora, “I mean, yes, the video quality is better, but they’re clearly all being made by men who have no idea how to give women an orgasm. That last girl looked like she just drank a tonne of water then pissed herself so she could end the scene. I felt bad for her. Try looking through the amateur videos,” she suggested, taking the laptop from Maxine who was starting to look majorly panicked. Maybe porn wasn’t the best idea.</p>
<p>While Maxine and Nora were busy, Abbie used the opportunity to have a quiet word with Ginny.</p>
<p>“Look, I’m sorry for being a bitch about you and Hunter. I genuinely thought there was something going on with you there,” she started, surprising Ginny into actually being honest with the girl. </p>
<p>“Thanks. I guess it’s an easy mistake to make. We do spend time together, but just as friends,” she replied quietly. “He’s a really good guy and I love hanging out with him but… he’s just not someone I’d wanna bang, you know?” Okay, maybe that was a bit too honest for a conversation with Abbie. Shit.</p>
<p>Luckily, Nora overheard and joined the conversation before Abbie could ruin it. “Yes! I totally get what you mean, like. He’s SUCH a great guy and I always want him to find the perfect girl to make him happy but, like, would I do him? No. You get that right, Abbie?”</p>
<p>“Yeah, no totally, I would never want to bang Hunter,” responded Abbie with a roll of her eyes.</p>
<p>“He really is the greatest guy though,” Ginny sighed aloud, “He’s got so much going on with him and he cares so much about things, you know? He’s way too good for anyone I know. He’s such a good person. He just makes you feel so light and bubbly when he’s around, and I love feeling that way, so of course I’m going to spend time with him,” Ginny explained, smiling wistfully thinking about her friend.</p>
<p>Of course, that was the moment Marcus just happened to be walking past the door, hearing the conversation happening in his sister’s room. He had only heard the last sentence about how Ginny felt when she was with Hunter and it was enough to cause a stabbing pain in his heart. It actually, physically, hurt him when he heard the way she talked about her boyfriend. Marcus couldn’t believe he had actually thought he had a chance with her. What had he been thinking? He couldn’t stand to hear more, and yet his feet wouldn’t move. </p>
<p>He heard Abbie, the bitch, respond to Ginny’s declaration with a sing-song, “oooooOOOoooh, Ginny loooves Hunter!” and they all started giggling. He didn’t hear Ginny deny it. Why wasn’t she denying it? Did she actually love Hunter?</p>
<p>“Fuck OFF Abbie,” he heard her laughing, and it sounded like she threw a pillow at her. Still no denial though. Since when did she laugh and joke like that with Abbie of all people? Why wasn’t she denying that she loved Hunter? </p>
<p>“Of course I love him, you asshole…” he heard, and he couldn’t bear to be around them for one more moment. He stormed into his room and shut the door, putting in his headphones and lighting up another joint. He clearly wasn’t high enough to deal with this shit. Of course she loved him, you asshole. He’s the perfect boyfriend and they’ve probably been fucking like bunnies since they started seeing each other. Marcus knew he’d never be able to resist her for a second if she were his. And he had been throwing himself at her this whole time, while she was madly in love with someone else. She must have thought he was so pathetic! He was done trying to be her friend. He needed to stop this unhealthy, one-sided obsession.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, if Marcus had only stayed until the end of Ginny’s sentence, he could have spared himself a lot of heartbreak.</p>
<p>Ginny thought she was beginning to understand Abbie’s idea of frienship and the way she communicated. Yes, she often came across as being unkind and spiteful, but sometimes, her snark was meant to be funny.</p>
<p>“Of course I love him, you asshole,” she began, laughing with the others and glad they finally understood her relationship with Hunter, “didn’t I just tell you how he’s the best person ever? But I love him in the way I love Austin. I’m so proud of him, and happy to be a part of his life, but in a way that completely ignores the fact that he has genitals. Just, straight up, nothing between us at all. He’s the same with me, as well, you know. Do you ever get the feeling that he might be gay?” she wondered aloud, finally voicing something she had been thinking about for a while.</p>
<p>“What, are you a homophobe?” asked Abbie, dryly. Ginny rolled her eyes and chuckled, seeing that Abbie was making a terrible joke.</p>
<p>“He can’t be. He was with Sam for a year and they had sex, remember?” Nora chimed in, ignoring Abbie’s comment.</p>
<p>“Oscar Wilde had a wife and kids and he was as gay as they come,” was Maxine’s wise addition to the conversation. “And clearly, everyone in the world is going to have sex, except for me, because I’m a huge loser who can’t even watch porn!” She wined, never having taken her eyes off the laptop screen the entire time she was talking. </p>
<p>This brought everyone’s attention back to the urgent matter at hand: Maxine’s anxieties about Sophie. </p>
<p>“Sweetie, I don’t think porn is going to help in this situation. You’ve just got to think about what feels good for you and then try to make her feel good as well,” said Nora kindly, putting her hand on Max’s shoulder.</p>
<p>“Yeah, just think about what you do and how you feel when you get yourself off, and just do those things with her. Or! Better yet, just straight up ask her if the things feel good. No one’s going to know more about her pleasure than she does, right? And you’re 15. Being a virgin isn’t a big deal. You’ve just got to make sure you feel comfortable with her so you can have open and honest communication about things that bring you both pleasure,” added Ginny, remembering the conversations she had had with her mom about this very thing. She had actually been speaking in more of a southern accent, without realising it, as she was channeling her mom so much in her advice. </p>
<p>Maxine flopped back onto the bed dramatically and sighed, “Ugh, don’t go all southern on me. You know everything sounds better in your southern accent, and that sounded like the best advice,” she started with a smile, even though she was groaning like she was in pain. </p>
<p>“It’s easy for you to say that, Ginny! You didn’t even have to worry about your first time. There wasn’t any build up, so you didn’t have to be nervous and make it into a big thing!” she exclaimed, with her eyes closed, clearly forgetting that there were other people in the room and that this was not a conversation Ginny would be having with Nora or Abbie present. At all.</p>
<p>Ginny’s heart plummeted and her stomach sank. She was not revealing that kind of information to Abbie and Nora. No, fucking, way. She started to get that feeling like she was trapped again and she needed to escape. She had to get out of here because this wasn’t something she could do. She was getting on with them, sure, but there was something about Abbie that made her want to keep all her secrets very close to her chest. She seemed like the kind of person who would hold onto a secret for a while, only to unleash it at the worst possible moment, in the worst possible way. Ginny wanted nothing to do with that side of her. Funny bitching, fine. Secret sharing, no.</p>
<p>Completely oblivious to Ginny’s inner turmoil, Maxine continued, “Maybe I just need to lose my virginity before I start anything with Sophie so it won’t be such a big deal…” she started, and honestly, Ginny wasn’t paying attention at all. Nora and Abbie must have said something, but all she could think was that she needed to leave, immediately.</p>
<p>She couldn’t believe that Maxine had brought that up so casually in conversation, in front of Nora and Abbie, and saw nothing wrong with it. That had been one of the most traumatic nights of Ginny’s life, not because she lost her virginity, but because of the panic she spiraled into afterwards. Maxine had witnessed the aftermath and held her as she cried, yet she was happy to bring it up in conversation with other people and didn’t even stop to apologise or check how Ginny would have reacted to it. </p>
<p>Ginny mumbled some excuse about having to be home for Austin and hastily exited the room, ready to run home before her thoughts started reminding her how little the people around her cared about her and how alone she was in the world. She needed her mom, but she hadn’t really spoken to her in days. Her mom was being really secretive and Ginny was sure there was something she was keeping from her. Because even Georgia didn’t care enough about Ginny to actually trust her with big issues. She was always being kept in the dark. Alone, with nothing and no one around her. Oh shit. Focus. Get home. Panic at home. </p>
<p>As she walked past the bathroom, she nearly ran into Maxine’s mom who had clearly just been for a run and was rushing back to her room. After assuring her that she was fine and it was just time for her to go home, she was ready to continue walking when the bathroom door opened.</p>
<p>Of course. Of fucking course Marcus would walk out at that exact moment, when she was one wrong word away from a fully blown panic attack. All she needed to do was get out of this fucking house, cross the fucking road, and run to her fucking bedroom where she could cry in fucking peace. </p>
<p>Seeing his face just reminded her of how shit she felt after he told her not to tell Padma about him sneaking into her room to take her virginity. He stank of pot and his eyes were glassy and red-rimmed. He was clearly high out of his mind, and if he had left the bathroom 10 seconds earlier, his mom would have seen him. Ginny was surprised his mom hadn’t smelt him. Well, it seemed his intention to stop getting high was a load of bullshit as well. Smoking in his house though? With his parents home? That was next level stupid. Ginny didn’t have time to ponder this.</p>
<p>She bolted down the stairs. Yep, she had literally resorted to physically running from her problems. Because that’s where she was at this point in her life. She ran through the house like she was being chased by the devil himself and she didn’t stop running until she had cleared the driveway and turned the corner, out of sight from the house.</p>
<p>A car was speeding down the road and she had almost run straight into it, but she stopped and jumped back at the last minute, startled by the loud beeping from the driver. </p>
<p>Defeated, she just sat on the pavement, ready to have her panic attack on the side of the road. She didn’t have the energy to hide or get up and cross the road. She had given up. She just needed 5 minutes, and she would be fine. </p>
<p>She pulled up her knees, curling herself into a ball, and rested her head on her knees, closing her eyes. She could do this. She’d do the deep breathing, she’d get up, then she’d get to her house before she started crying. She would not cry in the middle of the street where anyone could see her. She would breathe, and she would get home. Breathing in through her nose, and out through her mouth.</p>
<p>She couldn’t have been there for more than a minute when she realised she had been smelling the sweet and smoky aroma of marijuana while she was breathing in through the nose. Damn. She had thought she’d escaped scot free. She hadn’t even heard him approaching. Ted Bundy would have loved her dumb ass.</p>
<p>After a final, deep breath, she groaned in a shaky voice, “Go away, Marcus,” without opening her eyes or raising her head.</p>
<p>He didn’t respond immediately, making her worry that she had been imagining the smell and that she was going crazy, talking to herself while sitting on the side of the road. </p>
<p>“I’m just glad you stopped here so I didn’t have to climb your window to check up on you,” he spoke slowly, as though he had to really concentrate to get the words out of his mouth. Ah, right. Because he was high as fuck. There was nothing cute about the way he was behaving or speaking right now.</p>
<p>“I’m surprised you even had the wherewithal to find me in the state that you’re in,” she snarked back. She wasn’t in the mood for more broody Baker bullshit. She just wanted to go home, but getting up felt like an impossible, monumental effort at the moment. “Please, just, go. I’m fine. I just need a minute. Alone.”</p>
<p>“Oh, yeah, I sit on the side of the road crying when I’m fine too. Running into speeding cars, too. It’s a great way to show the world you’re fine,” he stated, laughing to himself as if the whole world were one hilarious joke.</p>
<p>She was starting to feel annoyed by his presence, but not quite enough to give her the energy to get up. Maybe if he just kept talking, she’d start to feel angry instead of empty, and then she could stand up and walk to her house. It was literally just a need to stand up and walk across the road. She was so pathetic, she couldn’t even lift her head from her knees, let alone force her body into a standing position. Maybe she could just sink into the ground and cease her existence. </p>
<p>“You’re not making this any better,” she grumbled.</p>
<p>“Didn’t say I was trying to make it any better,” he shrugged in response.</p>
<p>“I’m not going to talk about it,” she fought out after a while. When did talking become so difficult? Everything felt like such a chore right now. Her body felt weak, as though it had used up every bit of energy getting her out of that house and now it was just completely done with her. </p>
<p>“Didn’t say I wanted you to talk about it,” he responded, all light and airy as if he had not a problem in the world. Because he was high. He smelled disgusting, like he had smoked an entire field of pot. Clearly, there was something seriously wrong with him as well. No one gets high on their own like that on a Thursday if they haven’t got some serious problems. What a spectacular pair they made.</p>
<p>“I don’t want you here. I didn’t ask you to be here. Why. Are. You. Here?” she grit out, finally starting to feel some of that frustration. Good. A little bit more and she’d be able to get up and walk home. Probably shouldn’t have wasted that frustrated energy talking to Marcus the dumbass though.</p>
<p>He didn’t even respond. He’d probably fallen asleep, the asshole. She still couldn’t lift her head from her knees and she wasn’t going to waste what little energy she had trying to figure out what was going on with him. </p>
<p>Eventually, he spoke. “I don’t want you to be alone,” was all he said, like that explained anything at all. </p>
<p>What did that even mean? She was always alone. She had gotten used to it. He had no right barging into her life, making her feel like a whore, and then saying something like that. She wasn’t his person. He had a person and he was treating her like shit. </p>
<p>Finally, the anger! She looked at him incredulously, furious that he would dare to say something so soul-shattering, so perfectly sweet and loving to her when she was feeling so low. When he knew how she felt about him, but he couldn’t even muster enough of a fuck to… No. She wasn’t doing this. Not today. </p>
<p>She stood up suddenly, ready to bolt again. Or punch him square in the dick. “Well, I’d rather be alone than be around you!” She practically screamed it at him, while he was lying on the floor, smiling and looking like nothing in the world could bother him.</p>
<p>She marched across the road, seething, and ready to be done with the Baker twins forever. They were both assholes and she wanted nothing more to do with them. She looked back to see him sitting up suddenly, looking around like he had no idea where she had gone. The fucking idiot.</p>
<p>“Do. Not. Follow me. Marcus. Do you understand? Go get high and stay with your girlfriend. LEAVE. ME. ALONE.” she shouted back at him from across the street. She was probably making a big scene. She didn’t give a fuck. If he tried to climb up to her window outside, she was really going to tell her mom this time. She was sick of all of this bullshit.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0020"><h2>20. Chapter 20</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Ginny was relieved to see that Marcus was finally taking the hint and leaving her alone. He hadn’t followed her into her house, and he hadn’t messaged her at all since she had screamed at him in the streets. It seemed that she was finally free to start trying to get over this ridiculous crush on him.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, things at home were starting to become much more tense between Ginny and Georgia. Ginny was absolutely certain that there was something seriously worrying her mom, and yet Georgia was acting more and more chipper every day, pretending that their lives were perfect. It was a sure sign to Ginny that there was some real awful shit happening, and she wanted her mom to feel like Ginny was someone she could share her problems with. She wanted to help. Half the time, Ginny was the more responsible person between the two of them, so maybe she could provide some insights that her mother couldn’t think of.</p>
<p>But Georgia was refusing to budge, and started to get really angry when Ginny asked for real answers about what was bothering her. It couldn’t be her work, because as far as Ginny was aware, her mom was absolutely smashing it. She had saved the Green Gardens project, allowing marijuana dispensaries to finally become a part of the town, and she was getting on with her coworkers. Really well. She was dating the Mayor, but she didn’t seem to be moving too fast. They had only been on one date and he hadn’t even been to the house yet, as far as Ginny was aware. </p>
<p>She couldn’t imagine what Georgia could be so worried about that she would let it start to affect their relationship. It was making Ginny feel even more isolated, and she knew it was having an impact on Austin as well. He was crawling into her bed with nightmares almost every night now. Ginny didn’t want to mention it to Georgia, because it would just make her worry more, but she was starting to feel like everything was too much.</p>
<p>At least Battle of the Bands would be over this weekend, so she’d have Hunter back to some semblance of normality. If they won, he’d be in a great mood and ready to celebrate. If they lost, he’d be distraught, but cheering him up would distract Ginny from everything that was wrong with her life. It was a win-win situation. She just needed to get through her shift at work.</p>
<p>The job had actually been really great, and yet again, Ginny found herself admiring her mom’s genius. She had been right about the Sophomore Sleepover and she had been right about the job. Working for Joe was fantastic. He was starting to feel like one of her close friends, even though he was super old and probably didn’t think of her as anything more than an annoying kid.</p>
<p>He was so good at listening though, and he gave great advice. He was really funny and hot in a goofy, older guy kind of way. Her mom told her that he also looked incredible at the casino night, because he had worn an all black suit and he had trimmed the beard and just looked all kinds of sexy. Ginny could well imagine how hot he looked. She was absolutely, in no way, ever going to try to get with her boss. She just wanted to make that clear. Her love life was enough of a shit show without making poor Joe into some kind of paedophile. But she could appreciate when a hot, older guy was a stable, understanding presence in her life.</p>
<p>They just got on so well. He was really patient when she was learning new things, and he never yelled at anyone on his staff. Even when they made really stupid mistakes. It was just such a nice, relaxed vibe at work. </p>
<p>Joe had just been in the middle of telling her a dumb joke, but she had been hanging onto his every word, when it finally happened.</p>
<p>See, Ginny had been really good at hiding from Marcus whenever he had come into the shop in the past. She was almost certain that he didn’t even realise that she worked there. Anytime she saw him walking past the window, she found some reason to really helpfully go to find something in the back that Joe had misplaced. </p>
<p>At first, it was just because of the awkwardness of the first time they had been together, and after that it had just become a habit. She had been hyper-vigilant about keeping an eye on customers approaching for so long, it had become second nature. But today, Joe was in a really good mood and he was killing it with the jokes. She had been distracted and hadn’t been checking the windows.</p>
<p>She was alone when he approached the till and she couldn’t see any way to escape. She decided she’d just be professional, but curt. Pretend he was any other customer. He hadn’t looked up from his phone while he was approaching, so it was possible that he wouldn’t even notice that she was the one serving.</p>
<p>She waited for him to order. He was just staring at his phone and standing in front of her. Still not looking up. Ugh, no wonder old people hated teenagers. This was just frustrating.</p>
<p>At least he didn’t smell like pot though. He looked a lot better than the last time she had seen him. Maybe having some distance between them was good for him. </p>
<p>“What do you want?” she gritted out after it started to look like he was just going to stand there texting all morning. Seriously, who was he even texting for so long? Why would you walk up to a till if you were too busy to even make your order?</p>
<p>His eyes widened when he looked up and he had the biggest shit-eating grin on his face when he recognised her voice. He couldn’t help it. She had her angry little kitten face on and she was focusing all of her attention on him. He just wanted to bask in it for as long as possible. He hadn’t even realised she had been at the till, assuming that she would go and hide when she saw him approaching as usual. It was adorable how she thought she was being subtle when she literally ran from the storefront if she saw him approaching. This was going to be fun.</p>
<p>He put his phone away. He’d deal with that drama later.</p>
<p>“How about service with a smile?” he asked, with all the charm and cheekiness he could muster. She actually let out a growl at his response. He could bet her little claws were out and her hackles were rising, like a real little angry kitten. He didn’t know why he was trying his best to piss her off. She was probably still angry with him for whatever had happened in that conversation the other day that had set her off. He still had no idea what had made her so angry, but he had hoped that giving her some space would have made her cool off enough for him to apologise.</p>
<p>Seeing the storm raging on her face at having to deal with him now though, he was starting to think that there was something more serious causing her anger towards him. </p>
<p>She clenched her jaw and narrowed her eyes, waiting for him to spit out his order. He could see that she was struggling to contain herself while trying to remain professional at work. Wow, she was really mad. Still? Sure, it had only been two days, but he didn’t think he had actually done anything to make her really mad. He thought she had just been taking out her bad mood on him to make herself feel better and then they’d go back to normal when she realised she wasn’t actually that mad at him. </p>
<p>What had he done to her?</p>
<p>Sobered by that thought, he cleared his throat and just told her his order, “Iced coffee, black,” he said, ready to get this interaction over with.</p>
<p>His day was starting to seem a lot more bleak now for some reason and he just wanted to get out of here. He didn’t know what he had done to make her feel so spiteful towards him, besides having inappropriate feelings for her when she had a boyfriend. </p>
<p>While she was preparing his order, she had this mean little smile on her face, like she was planning something sneaky. He hoped she realised that if she spat in his coffee, that wouldn’t bother him. He had had his tongue insider her mouth before, after all. </p>
<p>She poured his coffee slowly, dramatically, asking, “Black? Like your heart?” as though she were trying to torture him. Well, fucking great. She was still going on about his ‘relationship’ with Padma. </p>
<p>Why did no one believe him when he said they weren’t in a relationship? He was trying to find a way to let her down easy at this point but she was insisting that he come to their Battle of the Bands bullshit tonight. Breaking up via text message was probably a dick move that would make Ginny hate him even more, so he supposed he could watch her performance and then break up with her in person. </p>
<p>While he had been distracted by those thoughts, Ginny had poured a tonne of milk in his coffee. Seriously? That couldn’t possibly be seen as professional. Whatever, he didn’t even feel like drinking coffee anymore.</p>
<p>“Ginny…” he started.</p>
<p>She slammed his drink down on the counter and told him the price without looking at him once. He tried to take the drink from her hands and their fingers accidentally brushed against each other. She recoiled, as though it physically disgusted her to touch him, closing her eyes to block out what was happening.</p>
<p>Wow. Okay. Message received. He threw the money on the counter and left, feeling like a monumental jackass for misreading their interactions so horribly. Of course she wanted nothing to do with the creep who kept trying to get with her even though she had a boyfriend. She probably only started being nice to him because she was afraid of what he might do if she rejected him outright. </p>
<p>He had read about how women were forced to be kind to creeps who hit on them because they were blamed if those same creeps reacted violently to their rejection. He couldn’t believe Ginny would think of him like that. Like some insane hot head who couldn’t handle being told by a girl that she wasn’t interested in him.</p>
<p>After that fun little interaction, Ginny’s mood had been officially ruined. Joe, pleasant as ever, had apparently observed that entire shit show of a conversation, and tried to make a joke about it but Ginny was just done with the day. She couldn’t wait for Battle of the Bands to be over, so her life could return to normal, and she could stop hanging out with people who stressed her out. Hunter was the only person she wanted to be around anymore. She was done with everyone else.</p>
<p>-</p>
<p>In an attempt to avoid any unnecessary drama, Ginny decided not to confront Max about how insensitively she brought up Ginny’s trauma in front of Abbie and Nora. Maxine hadn’t even noticed her distress, even though she had basically bolted from the room in a hysterical mess, so there was no point bringing it up when Ginny never wanted to talk about it again in the first place. </p>
<p>She was slowly starting to realise how one-sided her relationship with Max was. She had thought that Max would have been a bit more understanding of Ginny’s mental health struggles after seeing her break down in tears that night. Ginny couldn’t believe she would have to explain that her feelings were hurt or why they were hurt. She would just use this as a learning experience. She cared about Max. A lot. But, Max didn’t care about Ginny so much.</p>
<p>So, that’s how Ginny found herself standing with Max, Abbie, Nora, and Preston in the front row of the crowd waiting to see the bands perform in Battle of the Bands. She was there physically, but in her mind, she was on a beach in Guatemala, drinking virgin strawberry daquiris (AKA strawberry slushies) and laughing at all the adults walking past with Austin at her side. Or maybe they could be at a theme park, waiting to ride all the scariest rides and scream their hearts out. </p>
<p>Either way, Ginny would have to be totally zoned out if she stood any chance of enjoying the night. She was just here to enjoy the music of these talented bands. She loved music, and she genuinely couldn’t wait to see Hunter’s band perform. Their sound was so incredible, she felt like she was floating when they played. </p>
<p>Before the bands went on stage, Hunter and Brody came to the group to greet everyone and get hyped for the show. Hunter gave Ginny a big hug, but he was acting really shiftily and she could tell he was shitting himself. She squeezed his hand while they were talking, to let him know that she was here for him. She really was here for him and only him. 3SB was going to win, god damnit! They were the best! Brody gave them a funny look and then dragged Hunter away to get ready for the show, and Ginny’s attention returned to the stage where the first act was getting ready for his performance.</p>
<p>It was Sophie’s friend, Scott. Ginny only knew that because Maxine had repeated that phrase over and over while jumping up and down hysterically. It was still kind of fun to see her being so excited about Sophie and her friends. Ginny laughed along and was pulled into conversation about him before Maxine ran off to find Sophie. </p>
<p>His performance had been incredible. He had this deep, husky, sexy voice while he was singing that just made it impossible to look away. She was starting to understand now why Hunter had been so nervous about the competition. His band was really great, but all the performers were incredible as well. They were a seriously talented group of people, and she was just enjoying the show.</p>
<p>When it was time for Hunter’s band to perform, she let out a whoop and jumped up and down like an idiot. Luckily, their entire group was cheering and clapping excitedly, so she wasn’t the only one. Abbie screamed out, “WE LOVE YOU BRODY” which made him smile and strut across the stage like a stud. Ginny was just excited to see how the love song turned out.</p>
<p>She was a little surprised when Hunter started introducing the band, as none of the other groups really did that. They just went straight into the performance. She thought it was a cute personal touch to add.</p>
<p>That was until he completely blindsided her by saying, “So, I’m not normally the one who sings the songs. I leave that up to the very talented Padma,” which was weird because Padma’s voice was DEFINITELY the thing that made the band’s music so powerful. It made no sense.</p>
<p>It got worse. “But tonight I’m making an exception. Something happened to me recently, or rather… someone happened,” he continued. And Ginny was beginning to feel a sensation of dread rising through her body. Abbie and Nora looked at her immediately and started silent screaming with happiness, but Ginny was not feeling their excitement.</p>
<p>“Ginny Miller, this song’s for you,” Hunter looked in her direction when he said it and he looked apologetic. Good. Ginny was FURIOUS. A bit of warning would have been nice! He hadn’t even told her he was going to use her for this. She was NOT okay with this.</p>
<p>If he had asked her, she probably would have said no, and given him a better person to dedicate it to. Like Abbie! Abbie would have loved the attention, and she would have been a great fake girlfriend. Abbie and Nora were on either side of her, screaming in excitement and hugging her, but all she could feel was betrayal. By Hunter. The person she had been most supportive of.</p>
<p>She understood that he wanted to win, and that having a gimmick like dedicating the love song to a specific person would make it that much more memorable. She got that. He probably could have convinced her of it, if he had actually decided to be honest and tell her about it beforehand. He could have even warned her when they were talking before the show! But he chose to hide it from her and catch her completely off guard. She had this big fake smile on her face, like everything was all peaches and cream, but she was ready to boil over and scream on the inside.</p>
<p>The song ended before she even knew it and they were halfway into the next band’s performance when she snapped out of her thoughts and decided to go find him and give him a piece of her mind. The rest of the band had already come out into the crowd to watch the rest of the performers, but Hunter was hiding backstage like a coward. </p>
<p>As she stormed through the hallways looking for his hiding spot, she started to overhear another couple having a loud argument in one of the rooms. She slowed down and walked more quietly, unwilling to disturb their conversation, when she recognised Hunter’s voice as one of the people shouting. </p>
<p>She stopped completely and held her breath. Oh, shit. Did Hunter have a secret girlfriend who was upset that he dedicated the song to Ginny? </p>
<p>All she could hear was Hunter, raising his voice and sounding angrier than she had ever heard him being. “DON’T blame her for this. She had nothing to do with the decision and she’s probably pretty pissed off at me as well.” Hell yes, she was pissed off.</p>
<p>“Why would she be upset?” The other voice hissed, full of venom and hatred, “The little skank was clearly loving the attention and couldn’t get enough of it. She’s probably creaming her dirty little pants thinking she has a chance to finally bag the centre of attention now!”</p>
<p>Ginny recognised that voice. And she recognised that hatred and vitriol. Preston? What the fuck was he doing, talking about her like that? He knew nothing about her!</p>
<p>“You don’t know anything about her if you think she was enjoying that attention,” sighed Hunter, clearly knowing it was the wrong thing to say even as he was saying it.</p>
<p>“Of course I don’t fucking know her! I don’t want anything to do with the whores you keep around you so that no one finds out about us!” roared Preston in response.</p>
<p>The entire area was completely silent after that outburst. Ginny was so scared that Preston was going to storm out of the room and see her listening in to the conversation and then he’d DEFINITELY kill her, no questions asked. She was genuinely afraid of the anger and hatred in that boy, and she was finally starting to understand why he was always so vicious and hateful.</p>
<p>She knew how devastating it could be to watch the person you were in love with having an open relationship with someone else because they were too ashamed to admit to the world that they wanted to be with you. She had been feeling that anger and hatred all week as she came to terms with her situation.</p>
<p>At least Preston knew that Hunter really cared about him though. At least they could be seen in public together, even though they didn’t show their love for each other that way. At least Hunter didn’t actually have a girlfriend who he was making out with all over school, throwing it in Preston’s face. </p>
<p>“Pres, you know that’s not fair,” started Hunter, pleadingly, begging his lover to understand. “I’m not ashamed to be with you. I would be happy to walk down the hallways holding your hand and declaring my love for you.” He sniffled as he said this, and took a breath before continuing, “Our families would make our lives hell though. They would have no understanding of it at all. I don’t want you to be hurt any more than you already have been.” He was openly crying by the end of it and it sounded like Preston had rushed over to console him.</p>
<p>“They can’t hurt me any more than they already have, asshole. I thought we were keeping this secret because you didn’t want anyone to know you were gay or bi or whatever.” He growled out, even though he was clearly trying to comfort Hunter. </p>
<p>Hunter laughed. “Why would I care what anyone else thinks? You’re the only one who matters, and you’re clearly miserable because of me. I should have dedicated the song to you and finally let everyone know that you’re mine.” It sounded like they were making out at this point.</p>
<p>Ginny decided to take her chance and start sneaking away. She liked watching, but this seemed a bit too intimate for her to intrude on. Unfortunately, her shoes scuffed against the floor while she was walking. Not loudly or anything, but definitely audible over the sounds of the couple making out.</p>
<p>She was hoping they’d be too preoccupied with the hot make-out sesh, so they wouldn’t care that someone was in the hallways. She was wrong. They immediately rushed out of the room to see who had caught them together and Ginny turned around slowly and awkwardly to greet them.</p>
<p>She decided to speak first.</p>
<p>“Listen, I was just coming here to yell at you for being such an asshole, but I realise you’ve already been yelled at enough and I forgive you,” she rushed out, hoping they could get this over with as quickly as possible. She made absolutely no move to look in Preston’s direction and would probably be avoiding that for the rest of her life.</p>
<p>Hunter let out a sigh and laughed at her as if to say, “see? What did I tell you?” and Preston growled in response. Like an angry wolf.</p>
<p>“I’ll let you decide how to explain to everyone that we’re actually not together and that you were a total asshole for putting me in that situation, yeah? We don’t have to talk about…” she trailed off, pointing all around and gesturing the situation playing out in front of her.</p>
<p>She started slowly walking backwards, trying to casually get out of this conversation. No such luck. Hunter seemed to think that he needed to explain himself.</p>
<p>“Ginny, look. It’s not what it looks like. I wasn’t trying to lead you on. I really enjoy spending time with you, but Pres and I…” he looked to Preston for support, who was now leaning against the wall and clearly enjoying the show.</p>
<p>“I love him. And he loves me. But we come from families who would just make our lives hell. I can’t… we can’t. Nobody can know.” Ginny glanced in Preston’s direction and saw the momentary look of hurt that flashed across his face. That wasn’t the impression that she’d had after hearing the conversation between the two boys and it also clearly wasn’t the impression that Preston had either.</p>
<p>“That’s bullshit, Hunter. If you love him so much, you don’t need to hide that at school, from your friends. You don’t need to pretend to have other girlfriends and make him feel like some dirty little secret. So, you’d have to hide it from your family. Who the fuck cares? Everyone hides things from their parents! If you love him, be with him. Stop using your family as an excuse,” she seethed, probably letting out some of her Marcus anger on him, but whatever. He needed to hear it.</p>
<p>“I didn’t care that you asked me on a date when we first met. We’ve been close friends since then, and you never once told me about your relationship. You couldn’t trust me with that part of your life, that’s fine. But don’t you dare pretend that anyone is making you hide this relationship other than you. That’s your choice, and it’s making you both feel like shit.” She said, then she stormed off. She was going home. She didn’t give a fuck who won this stupid competition.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0021"><h2>21. Chapter 21</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Ok, I know I've already released 4 chapters today, and the impulse control isn't looking great, BUT!! I got some really nice comments today for the first time so I've decided to put out (that's what she said) another chapter. It's kind of the first half of a 2-part chapter, with the second part released tomorrow. Let me know what you think!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>When Ginny got home, Austin was alone, sleeping in his room. She had no idea where Georgia was, but she was glad to have the house to herself. She went straight up to her room and changed into her comfiest PJs. She went and got an ice cream sandwich from downstairs and sat on her bed, watching Sunny and trying not to think about her realisation that there was no one in her life who actually really saw her or cared about her.</p>
<p>MB: Hey</p>
<p>Except maybe Marcus. She had been treating him like shit just because she couldn’t control her feelings for him. It wasn’t his fault that he was unavailable. The more Ginny thought about it, the more she realised that he had never actually initiated anything romantic with her, since they had had sex, except look intensely into her eyes. He was always checking on her, and trying to make her feel better and she was constantly battling her urge to throw herself at him. What if he was just trying to be a genuinely good friend and she had messed it all up by being in love with him?</p>
<p>She thought hard on their previous interactions. It must have been so so so confusing for the poor boy. He was just standing near her, being himself (sexy, irresistible), having a conversation with her, and she always ended up getting angered by her internal monologue. From the outside, she probably looked insane.</p>
<p>Yet here he was, probably the only person who had noticed that she left Battle of the Bands early. Unless he hadn’t been there. She didn’t recall seeing him there because she had been so wrapped up in her own drama. He must have been there to support Padma, though, right? Padma had returned to the crowd after their performance but she hadn’t stayed with the group. She must have gone to find Marcus, right? Ginny couldn’t tell. She was just like all the other self-absorbed assholes at the school. Too busy focusing on their own drama to even check in on the people around them. She hadn’t even thought about Bracia and her friends for weeks, even though they had been so kind and supportive when she spent time with them.</p>
<p>She was an asshole. And a terrible friend. She decided right then and there that she was going to change that. She was going to stop spending time with toxic people (i.e. Maxine and co.) and she was going to start spending more time alone or with people who wanted to see others doing well. She started off by responding to Marcus.</p>
<p>She couldn’t find the right words to say. Everything sounded pathetic when she typed it out. So, she took a deep breath and called him. For the first time. </p>
<p>The phone was ringing. A lot. Oh, shit, he was probably still at Battle of the Bands. Maybe he wouldn’t hear it and she could just message to say that she accidentally--</p>
<p>“Hello?” He picked up. And his voice sounded husky and sexy as always. There was no background noise though. Maybe he hadn’t been at Battle of the Bands after all.</p>
<p>“Were you at Battle of the Bands?” she blurted out. Well, that wasn’t what she had planned on saying.</p>
<p>He let out a chuckle, which sounded a bit sad. She had hurt him by not noticing whether or not he was there with her. She was such an asshole.</p>
<p>“Yeah, I saw them performing your song. It was… catchy,” he gritted out, sounding partly amused and partly disgusted. Ugh, great. This is not how she wanted the conversation to go. At all.</p>
<p>“Ughh, that was NOT my song.” She whined. This was definitely not how she had been planning to apologise for being a shit friend. Yelling was never a good part of an apology. </p>
<p>He laughed out loud at that. “Well, someone needs to tell Hunter, because that introduction definitely made it seem like it was your song,” he said, sarcasm dripping from his voice.</p>
<p>“Look, I’ve already been in one fight about this god damned song tonight. Do you really want to do this right now? I was just calling to apologise for being such a shitty friend,” she grumbled, rolling her eyes. Okay, this was officially the worst apology in the history of apologies.</p>
<p>“Wow. So many things to unpack there,” he said with a chuckle. “Who were you fighting about your song?”</p>
<p>“Can we please stop calling it my song? Hunter did not have my permission to announce that bogus dedication. He completely blindsided me and--” she started to rant but he cut her off.</p>
<p>“Guys don’t usually have to get permission before dedicating a love song to their girlfriend,” he defended, clearly amused by her reaction, “That kind of ruins the romance of it,” he ended with a comical whisper, as though it were a big secret.</p>
<p>Ginny let out the biggest groan known to humanity.</p>
<p>“UUUGHHHHHHHHHH are you SERIOUS? Not you too?! How many times do I have to tell people that Hunter and I aren’t together? Are boys and girls not allowed to be friends in this town? Is there some town rule I’ve violated by spending time with someone I enjoy hanging out with?” she wailed, feeling dramatic but not caring.</p>
<p>“We haven’t done anything romantic, EVER. Why is this such an issue for everyone? I’m so sick of everyone judging me and criticising my friendships and my choices and my life. I’m not trying to hurt anyone, I’m not purposely doing horrible things, but you’d think I were some kind of psychopath with the way everyone’s been treating me. God, this is the worst apology ever. I’m sorry, I’ll try it again,” she said with a sigh. </p>
<p>The other end of the phone call was completely, deadly silent. She couldn’t even hear any breathing. She looked at her phone to make sure the call was still connected.</p>
<p>“Hello? Marcus, are you there?” She asked, wondering if there was some kind of connectivity issue, “I think you’re muted? I can’t hear you!” she continued. Just her luck. She wasn’t having that rant again. Maybe she could actually apologise to him without yelling next time though so, silver lining, or whatever.</p>
<p>“I’m here.” was all he said. He sounded a bit distant and far away. “Can I please come over?” he asked, sounding incredibly frustrated at having to verbalise the question.</p>
<p>Could he come over? When she was feeling so vulnerable and she was still consumed by her ridiculous crush on him? Erm, hell no.</p>
<p>“No, listen. I just wanted to call you so I could apologise for being such a shitty friend. I’m really sorry. I don’t want to be near you right now,” she tried to explain. That sounded really bad, though. Maybe she should give up for today and try again another time. </p>
<p>“I think there have been a lot of misunderstandings between us and I think I need to come over there, Ginny. Please.” He sounded really serious, and she didn’t want to turn him down but she just didn’t have the energy to fight her feelings for him today. Maybe she could explain as part of her apology, so he would understand.</p>
<p>“No, I think we need to have this conversation on the phone, Marcus. Please. I can’t be around you right now.” She pleaded, hoping he’d just give up and let her apologise and then they could go to sleep and be friends again. </p>
<p>“Why not? Is everything alright? What’s going on, Ginny?” He was starting to sound concerned now. Good. That would make him more likely to listen to her while she spoke. </p>
<p>She sighed. This was not going to be an easy conversation to have.</p>
<p>Taking a deep breath, she just decided to be completely honest. Lay everything out on the table and if he didn’t want to be her friend anymore, then she’d have to be understanding. It would be his choice completely. </p>
<p>“It’s nothing serious, so please don’t worry. I just… I have some things I have to tell you. Say to you. And… I’m not sure how you’re going to react, and I don’t want it to ruin our friendship completely. But I can’t control your reaction to what I’m going to say. I just want to ask that you listen to everything I say, please, and don’t interrupt me because I don’t know that I’ll be able to say everything I want to say if I don’t just let it all out at once. Can you do that?”</p>
<p>There was a long pause and she was getting nervous. Was it really so hard to agree to let her speak without interruptions?</p>
<p>He let out a sigh and eventually responded, “I can’t promise that I won’t accidentally interrupt you with my reactions, but I will try my best. I promise.”</p>
<p>She stood up and started pacing. She couldn’t believe she was going to have this absolutely humiliating conversation with him. She needed this, though. She was thinking about it constantly, she’d had this conversation in her mind a million times.</p>
<p>“Okay.” she started talking, trying to decide how she would start. “Alright. So. You’re really important to me,” she began, but he let out a sardonic laugh.</p>
<p>“What? Okay, that’s not the best way to start it, I guess. But it’s true! I know we haven’t known each other for a very long time but… you’ve become really important to me. I care about you, a lot…” she trailed off. This was probably too strong a start. She needed to back up a bit.</p>
<p>“I really appreciate that you shared your experiences from” she hesitated, trying to come up with a way to phrase it, but only being able to think of, “last year. It must have been really hard to share that and I’m touched that you trusted me enough to talk about it with me. And I’m not saying we have to talk about it all the time or anything, but I just want you to know that,” she stopped pacing and just looked at the ceiling.</p>
<p>“Ugh, this is not what I wanted-- that’s not what this is about at all. I-- Let me start again. Are you still listening?” she was starting to get really flustered and she was eternally grateful that this was a conversation they were not having in person. She definitely would have chickened out if it had been.</p>
<p>He let out another dry chuckle and responded, “Yes, I’m still listening. You’re glad I talked to you about Mike’s death,” he straight up just came out and said it. That was good. That blunt honesty would be helpful and she needed to tell him what she needed to say quickly before he started to get annoyed.</p>
<p>“Right. Yes, so, we kind of, shared things, and talked. I felt like we were getting close and that I was starting to really see you. I didn’t want to be something in your life that was destructive. I don’t want to judge you or your grieving process at all, but I wanted to be more than just some girl you used to cheat on your girlfriend. I wanted to be your friend, because I liked spending time with you and getting to know more about you. I didn’t want to be one of your sexual outlets or to help you to pour out all your frustrations with the situation in a destructive way--”</p>
<p>He let out a huge groan and interrupted, saying, “Oh my God, no please. Can we just--”</p>
<p>But she was faster. “You promised no interruptions!! I haven’t even started getting to what I wanted to say. I’m sorry, I’ll be quick, I promise and then I’ll let you respond and I’ll listen to everything at the end. Okay?”</p>
<p>He sighed. “Okay, please continue.”</p>
<p>“Okay. So, I wanted to be your friend. I really just wanted to be near you a lot, like, all the time. In a friendly way, not in a creepy stalker way. I knew you had your thing with Padma and I honestly don’t want to mess that up. That’s not what this is about at all. I just want us to be able to have a real friendship and I know I keep having weird outbursts on you and it’s not fair so I just need to be honest and put it all out there so that doesn’t keep happening,” she said, all in one breath, trying to get these words out of her body as quickly as possible. She was almost done with the terrible confession, and then she’d probably just need to sleep for two days straight. Honesty was exhausting.</p>
<p>“You have to know the effect you have on girls, though, surely? Like, it’s really hard to be your friend! You look so intensely at everyone, like you’re looking right into my mind. You stand so close when we’re talking, it’s hard to think of anything but wanting to close the distance between us and--” she cleared her throat, getting a bit carried away there. She needed a cold shower after this.</p>
<p>“Well, you get my point. It’s been hard, trying to stop myself from throwing myself at you. But I was trying because I wanted to be your friend. I want to be your friend. I want to spend time with you and talk about things that are bugging me and the TV shows I’m watching. I want to be able to have casual hugs with you and hold your hands and be silly idiots together, like I do with Hunter. Or, like I did with Hunter, I don’t know..” she trailed off again, getting distracted by that thought. She really hoped he was listening because she was never saying any of these things ever again.</p>
<p>“I realised tonight that you’re the best person in my life and I’ve been pushing you away because of my stupid feelings for you and I just want you to know that I’m trying. I’m really trying not to feel this way about you, and I’m really trying not to be a destructive force in your life. I think you’re one of the kindest people I’ve ever known and I just think you deserve to finally have an easy life, and I don’t want to make it more difficult.” She was blubbering now and she wasn’t sure that he would be able to understand what she was saying. When did she even start crying? She needed to power through and get to the end. Only a little longer now.</p>
<p>She took a deep, steadying breath and ignored the tears streaming down her face, continuing, “I know that you have a lot going on, and I know you don’t need anymore drama in your life. I’m sorry I’ve been pushing you away and getting angry,” she sniffled, sounding absolutely pathetic at this point. “I understand if you don’t want to be my friend anymore, or if you want to wait until I have this stupid crush under control.” She paused, trying to remember if there was anything else she needed to add. And also to get her crying under control. </p>
<p>She took another deep breath, satisfied that she had said enough and continued, “That’s all I have to say.” she ended, flopping onto her bed.</p>
<p>She had done it. She had said everything that she needed to say now. All she had to do was listen to his thoughts and reactions. And then sleep. For a really long time. </p>
<p>She gave him a minute to collect his thoughts. She had said a lot of things in that time and there was a lot he needed to digest. God, imagine if every girl who fancied him had these long outbursts and he had to deal with all their bullshit and drama just so he could get laid? She let out a little giggle at the thought of Marcus having a well-practised “Awww, you have feelings for me and now you need to leave me alone speech” prepared for this very situation. </p>
<p>Honestly, at this point, even if he gave her the speech and sent her on her way, she was just glad that she had summoned enough bravery to lay her feelings out on the table. She’d prefer it if he wanted to be her friend and help her to ignore her silly crush, but she thought she’d be able to survive if he wanted to ghost her or whatever. It had been nice having friends at Wellsbury, but it had also been draining. She’d be happy to just go back to being alone and not having to worry about other people’s judgement or feelings again. </p>
<p>After a couple minutes, she realised that his end had been completely silent. Like, this-call-ended-a-while-ago-and-you’ve-been-talking-to-thin-air kind of silent. Would she ever be able to say all that again if the call had disconnected and he hadn’t been able to hear it?</p>
<p>Had he heard her entire speech and hung up the phone not wanting to respond?</p>
<p>Was she not even going to get a speech about how they couldn’t be friends?</p>
<p>She didn’t think she would feel so empty at the thought, but she felt a deep well of sadness in her heart at the idea that she had just poured her feelings out to a boy and he didn’t even care enough to acknowledge them. </p>
<p>She looked at the phone and saw that the call was still going but that he had muted himself. Probably to stop himself from interrupting her. She hoped. </p>
<p>Letting out a relieved sigh, she said into the phone, “Sorry if you’ve been talking that whole time! I couldn’t hear you. You’ve been muted.”</p>
<p>Still no response.</p>
<p>“Marcus? Are you there?”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0022"><h2>22. Chapter 22</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Still nothing. </p>
<p>She didn’t know what the hell was going on and she was getting pissed off. Her mom rang the doorbell and she hung up the phone, deciding to deal with all that later. Fuck it, she was going to get another ice cream sandwich and watch Lord of the Rings until she fell asleep. She deserved it after all the bullshit she had to deal with.</p>
<p>She opened the door for her mom and went straight to the kitchen for her ice cream. She didn’t even start lecturing her about leaving her key at home. She could have woken Austin if Ginny had still been at Battle of the Bands, but whatever. </p>
<p>She started walking back upstairs to start the movie when she heard a voice from the doorway. “Um… I wasn’t sure if that was an invitation to enter or…?”</p>
<p>Seriously? Did he just show up at her front door? Ginny had to stop to process this information for a moment.</p>
<p>He couldn’t respond verbally to what she had said on the phone? He had to travel out of his house, across the street, and up to her front door to let her know he wasn’t interested in a friendship?</p>
<p>She sighed, and took another bite of her ice cream sandwich. “Why are you here, Marcus?”</p>
<p>“I had a response that I couldn’t give on the phone so I thought I’d come to your door to see if you’d let me in.”</p>
<p>She rolled her eyes and looked at him, unimpressed. The fucking Bakers and their drama. She gestured for him to come inside then looked at him expectantly. He knew how she felt now, so she didn’t feel any need to hide how much she loved looking at his face anymore. </p>
<p>He looked tired, but he was still as beautiful as ever. She hadn’t even asked him how he had been doing this week. She knew there was something wrong because he had smoked SO MUCH POT on Thursday. Like, too much to be healthy. And she hadn’t even asked about it. Ughhh. She’d be a better friend next time. </p>
<p>She wanted to take a step forward, and make sure he was okay. But she had said enough. It was his turn now and she needed to listen. </p>
<p>They stood in silence for a while, just looking at each other. Ginny couldn’t figure out what was going on in his mind.</p>
<p>Finally, he stepped closer to her and spoke in a soft whisper, “Did you really mean it?” His voice sounded fragile, like he was afraid to speak too loudly in case it would set off an alarm.</p>
<p>He was giving her an out. An opportunity to take it all back, even though he knew damn well that it was all true.</p>
<p>“Yes.” she stated it simply, unashamed to finally be brave enough to be honest. She had no regrets. “And I’m not sorry for telling you the truth so you can forget about getting another--”</p>
<p>He kissed her.</p>
<p>He launched himself forward like he had just been waiting and holding himself back for the longest time. He kissed her like he couldn’t believe he’d ever get the chance to kiss her again and he had to make it worth it. </p>
<p>Lights exploded behind Ginny’s eyelids during the kiss, like fireworks celebrating this moment’s arrival. She grabbed his hair, deepening the kiss and opening her mouth to allow his tongue to stroke hers. He pulled her closer, pressing their entire bodies together as he leaned into the kiss. It was like nothing she had ever felt before.</p>
<p>She felt like she was on fire and he was the only thing that would stop her from burning up into ashes. She didn’t want to breathe without being able to feel him, smell him, taste him. He was hers. Finally. He knew how she felt about him and it wasn’t pushing him away. </p>
<p>He lifted her by the hips and she wrapped her legs around him, still joined at the mouth. He grabbed her hair with one hand and used the other to cup her ass. She was grinding against his hard cock and it was hitting her in just the right spot to create an amazing feeling at her core. She had to break the kiss to let out a moan, but he just kept kissing down her jaw and her neck, refusing to break the contact between his lips and her body. </p>
<p>She was going to come like this, fully clothed. He pushed her into a wall and started thrusting harder, their kiss getting fiercer and more desperate. Ginny couldn’t think of anything past the feeling of pleasure building inside her. Ohhh she felt so close to him, so close to coming, she could almost feel it. She felt the pressure building even further as his thrusts got faster and more erratic. She came with a loud groan, right there in the hallway in front of her door. She let out a surprised laugh and looked at him, now that their lips had finally separated.</p>
<p>He looked like an absolute wreck. His hair was all over the place from her grabbing and touching. His lips were red and swollen, and he had a dazed look in his eyes. His smile was a lazy grin, as he leaned in for another kiss. As though he just couldn’t help himself now that he knew he had blanket permission to take what he wanted.</p>
<p>Her legs were getting tired and she started slipping down, but he hoisted her back up and grabbed both of her ass cheeks in his hands. “Let’s continue this conversation upstairs,” he suggested, his voice so deep and husky, it sent after shocks through the girl in his arms.</p>
<p>He carried her upstairs and laid her on her bed. She was lying on her back looking up at him, her legs still wrapped around his waist. She was never letting him go. Staring into his eyes, seeing the awe and wonder there, she started to realise that her feelings were a lot deeper than a simple crush. This boy was becoming her world, and she had no idea what she’d do if anything happened to destroy what they had. </p>
<p>She hesitated, realising that they hadn’t really spoken since she had admitted her feelings for him. She had assumed that he felt the same way, because he had kissed her in response. But she also knew that he used sex as a way to release his frustrations, so what if he just saw her as an easy--</p>
<p>No, she needed to trust him. She had laid out all of her feelings there for him. He knew what she felt, and he knew what she had been going through. The Marcus she was beginning to know wouldn’t use her or throw away her feelings like that. </p>
<p>But there had been another side of Marcus that she didn’t know. Ginny didn’t know how he behaved when he was with Padma. She didn’t know if he made her feel so seen, so understood, so important. Was it possible that he just made everyone feel that way? That he couldn’t help it, that that was just the impression people got from spending time with him? </p>
<p>After all, that was how she had felt the first time. She had felt special then, too, when he climbed into her room to ask if she liked Hunter. Until he had finished with her and told her not to tell Padma.</p>
<p>Hadn’t she told him that she didn’t want to mess up what he had with Padma? What if he thought that meant she wanted to enter a secret friends with benefits situation where they would hang out when he wanted it and have sex when he wanted it, while still continuing whatever he had going with all the other girls as well?</p>
<p>She really hadn’t been that clear about her feelings or what she wanted. She had just blurted all her incoherent thoughts and feelings at him and expected him to understand.</p>
<p>Marcus could see the moment Ginny’s thoughts started to change. He watched her hesitate and pull back for a moment, then look away from him, staring into the distance, eyes shifting everywhere as though she couldn’t focus on one thought or idea. He wanted to give her a chance to come out of it on her own, but her breathing was starting to get heavy and she was getting a panicked look in her eyes.</p>
<p>She pushed him off her, as gently as she could. She was starting to feel trapped, and the weight he had been putting on her, which had once felt comforting and safe, was now beginning to feel suffocating. She just needed to smile and take a few deep breaths and everything would be alright.</p>
<p>He held her hand and kissed it, looking into her eyes and showing her that he was there. For her. That he wasn’t judging or annoyed. He was giving her time and space to get her thoughts in order.</p>
<p>She smiled sheepishly and breathed out, “Sorry!” for the outburst, for the spirally thoughts, for being such a mess.</p>
<p>“Don’t apologise. You never need to apologise for that,” he responded, slowly, calmly, trying not to spook her. He leaned forward and kissed her on the head. “You can tell me what you were thinking, if you want,” he offered, moving them into a position allowing her to comfortably rest her head on his chest. </p>
<p>It was easier for her to talk about it when she wasn’t looking at him. But she wanted to be grounded to reality by looking into his eyes. She needed to be present for this conversation. She sat up, looking him in the eye and holding his hands in hers. She needed to be open and honest.</p>
<p>“While I really appreciated your response,” she started, then smiled, blushing, “I just need to make sure there aren’t any misunderstandings this time.”</p>
<p>He sighed and adjusted his position so he was sitting up straighter. He looked mildly uncomfortable, but focused on the conversation.</p>
<p>“I broke up with Padma at Battle of the Bands.” he said, with a wince, anticipating that she would yell at him for choosing the wrong time or place to break up with his girlfriend. She didn’t say anything or react with her face at all. He wasn’t sure what to make of that, so he just continued.</p>
<p>“The relationship I had with her wasn’t healthy. It was nothing that was supposed to even resemble a relationship. After Mike… I hadn’t been doing well. I hadn’t been coping at all, I was barely ever going to school, and when I did, I just went through the day like a zombie, not caring about anyone or anything. Time seemed to just pass me by and nothing felt like it made sense.” He sighed and let out a little laugh.</p>
<p>“Maxine dragged me to a couple parties to try to distract me from everything, but you can imagine how fun I was at those things.” He looked away with a smile.</p>
<p>“I snuck off with a kid I knew was a drug dealer and got high for the first time at one of those parties. It was the first time I had felt alive and carefree in a long time, so I just… always wanted to do it.” He remembered those days only vaguely, he had been getting high on his own so frequently.</p>
<p>“After a while, it just didn’t have the same effect anymore. I was getting high but the thoughts started coming back, and it made me think things. Really dark things. It wasn’t good for me to do it alone, so I just stopped altogether.” He paused and took a deep, shaky breath. “I was miserable, but at least I was alive.” His voice cracked at the end and he looked up to see if she was still listening. </p>
<p>Of course she was. She looked so heartbroken, tears streaming down her face, like she just couldn’t believe he had been through all of that alone. She was gripping his hand tightly and trying to subtly wipe the tears from her face. He smiled and kissed her cheek, trying to communicate that she didn’t have to hide her tears from him.</p>
<p>“That’s when Padma and I first got together. She knew me as the kid that was always stoned, so she asked me if I could set her up with my dealer. She’d been going through some stuff with her family and she needed to escape.” He paused again, as though trying to remember exactly what happened so he could be as factual as possible, “I gave her all the weed I had on me and told her I didn’t need it anymore, getting high on my own wasn’t an option. She counter-offered that we could get high together so it wouldn’t be so bad, and we just kept getting high and making out with each other anytime we got stressed.” </p>
<p>He stopped and looked Ginny in the eye while saying, “I swear to you, that was all it was. We were getting high and making out and there was never any talk of relationships or being a couple. It was just stress relief. She had only recently started telling other people that she wanted more out of the relationship with me, but she never actually told me anything about that.”</p>
<p>He looked like he was finished talking, but Ginny still had so many questions. Why did he not want Padma to know about them if it was just a stress relief situation? What about all the other girls? Why was he making out with Padma all over school if he didn’t want a public relationship with her?</p>
<p>She hadn’t realised that she had spoken out loud until he laughed and responded, “Well, to answer your first question, I didn’t know how she was going to react or what she would have told her friends. From our brief conversations in the past, Padma’s friends seemed a little ruthless, and honestly? I just didn’t want to land you in that situation unprepared. They had already started making snide comments about the way I was treating Padma and I just didn’t think it was worth the drama” he winced apologetically, probably thinking about all the drama he had inadvertently caused by telling her not to tell Padma in the first place. </p>
<p>She shrugged. That made sense, and there was nothing that could be done about that situation now anyway. </p>
<p>“And honestly, I’m a little stumped about why you think I have a bunch of girls crawling around me. Have you ever seen me with other girls, besides you, Maxine, and Padma?” he asked, genuinely perplexed, “What ever gave you the impression that I could handle more than what I had going with you and Padma?”</p>
<p>She tried to think back, embarrassed at the thought that she might have made assumptions about him and realised, with horror, when she had started believing that she was one out of a long list of girls. Oh man, she didn’t want to talk about it! It was so cringe. </p>
<p>She hid her face in her hands and mumbled, “Ok, I’ll tell you but you can’t look at me while I say it.”</p>
<p>He looked around, trying to figure out where to focus his attention, then agreed.</p>
<p>“That first time, when we were, um.. When you were” she looked up to the sky, unable to believe that she had to verbalise these thoughts right now, “When we were having sex, I heard you muttering a list of girls’ names or something under your breath before you said my name and… climaxed” she finished, quickly, putting her face back into her hands.</p>
<p>She honestly shouldn’t have been so embarrassed to admit that, but it had made her feel awful at the time. She didn’t know why she had assumed that he was listing all his previous conquests, rather than listing all the people he had been fantasising about while he was with her, but either way… it was still pretty mortifying. </p>
<p>Ginny chanced a glance at Marcus and saw first the confusion on his face, then his dawning horror at the realisation of what she had heard.</p>
<p>He cupped his hand under her jaw and forced her to look him in the eye. “Now, usually I wouldn’t be pleased to admit something like this. And I’d probably want to deny it completely. But I’m now seeing that it is far more dangerous to let your imagination run wild than to tell you the truth, so I’m going to be completely honest with you right now,” he said with a serious look on his face. He closed his eyes and breathed in.</p>
<p>“I read online that boys could last longer during sex if they concentrated on something difficult so… I was listing the… elementsfromtheperiodictable” he finished in a jumble, probably hoping that she couldn’t understand the last bit.</p>
<p>Ginny let out a huge peal of laughter before realising that he was probably embarrassed to admit that, and covered her mouth with her hand. She was just so bloody relieved that she had been wrong, so she was laughing at herself for making such a ridiculously incorrect assumption. </p>
<p>“So, you’ve been reciting the elements of the periodic table when you’ve been having sex, so that you’d last longer?” she asked with a teasing smile, finally feeling at peace with their relationship.</p>
<p>“Well, I’ve only done it that one time and I didn’t even seem to last that long so…” he trailed off with a shrug and a sheepish smile.</p>
<p>Once again, this revelation was just too much for Ginny.</p>
<p>“I just want to clarify. Do you mean that you’ve only done the periodic table thing once, or that you’ve only done the sex once?”</p>
<p>“Well, technically both, I guess. If we’re being fully honest.”</p>
<p>“So, when you climbed into my room, jealously asking about my date with Hunter, which had JUST been two friends hanging out and I’m pretty sure I told you that, you had been a virgin?”</p>
<p>“Yes. And you definitely didn’t tell me that your date with Hunter was just a friends thing, but continue.”</p>
<p>“1. I totally did. 2. So… when you saw my boobs for the first time,” she couldn’t help the blush that spread across her face at the fact that she was even asking this question, “And you got that cute little shocked look on your face like you had never seen a pair of boobs before..?”</p>
<p>“Yes, they were the most fantastic boobs I had ever seen before, and yes they were also the first real pair I had seen on a girl in real life,” he smirked, pleased with the conversation’s new teasing tone. </p>
<p>“Is there anything else you need to get off your chest now, in the name of full disclosure?” She asked, leaning in to kiss him but stopping just before their lips met. The little tease.</p>
<p>“Mmmm, well I did come in my pants when we were downstairs and it’s a bit cold and sticky down there now,” he started, as he grabbed her head for another kiss, “I think I need to have a shower.”</p>
<p>Her face fell at the idea of him going home to shower after they had finally gotten to a place where they could be together, guilt free, with nothing left to hide. That was probably unhealthy, right? You shouldn’t want to spend every waking moment with someone else to the extent that you don’t even want them to be able to have a shower. That didn’t sound good. But that’s definitely how she was feeling.</p>
<p>He noticed the look on her face and elaborated, “I need to be fully, explicitly honest with you now, I’m realising. I want to have a shower here. With you. Naked together,” He punctuated each sentence with a kiss, and then held her closer for a more passionate kiss when he finished talking. </p>
<p>She was giggling and deliriously happy when she pulled away from the kiss, pleased to finally be able to just look at him as much as she wanted without having to worry that he’d notice the hunger in her eyes.</p>
<p>“Sounds great in theory, but there’s no way in hell,” she started to explain. At his sad, kicked puppy expression, she smiled and kissed him again, and again, and again, until he smiled and leaned in to kiss her some more.</p>
<p>“You see, the moment we both get naked and decide to hop in the shower, two things will happen:” she leaned in to kiss him; she just couldn’t resist, “first, my mom will come home, desperate to pee and barge into the bathroom,” she kissed him again, because she could, “and then Austin will wake up in the night, desperate to pee, and barge into the bathroom.” Again, she punctuated her point with a kiss. “Everyone will see us trying to get it on in the shower, and frankly, the drama just wouldn’t be worth it.” She guaranteed, with the look of someone who always knew to expect the most unfortunate circumstances to occur. </p>
<p>She leaned in to kiss him again, smiling at the fact that she’d really never get tired of being able to kiss his lips whenever she wanted. He started smiling because she was smiling, and soon they were just a pair of grinning idiots who couldn’t keep their hands off each other. </p>
<p>They never did make it to the shower, but they did find some creative ways of cleaning up Marcus’s uncomfortable groin situation. Eventually, they fell asleep together, too exhausted and happy to worry about being caught together in the morning. For the first time in a very long time, they both fell asleep without a single care in the world.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0023"><h2>23. Chapter 23</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The next day, Ginny couldn’t keep the smile off her face no matter what. She and Marcus had woken up early and snuck him out before anyone could notice that he had slept in her bed. Despite the early start, she felt more well-rested than she ever had before. She went downstairs and made breakfast for herself, her mom, and Austin. It wasn’t much, just eggs and bacon, but it was something she hadn’t done for a long time. Maybe next time she could make pancakes. Austin LOVED her pancakes. He claimed they were the best pancakes in the world and she was inclined to agree with him.</p>
<p>“Oooh someone’s in a good mood today! I heard that Hunter’s band won Battle of the Bands last night and that the winning song had been dedicated to you, sweetie. Is that what’s made you so happy you woke up early to make breakfast?” exclaimed Georgia as she sat down, ready to eat the meal prepared by her teenage daughter. </p>
<p>Ginny rolled her eyes, “How did you even hear about that? Ugh, this is going to be a pain for a while isn’t it?” she sat heavily on the chair next to Georgia and started picking at her breakfast. She smiled at the delicious flavour of the eggs she had made. She should make some for Marcus one day. Her smile grew into a grin.</p>
<p>“Tell momma all about it, Peach” encouraged Georgia, confused by the sudden mood changes she noticed in her daughter.</p>
<p>“Okay, well.” She took a deep breath. This was going to be a long explanation, “Hunter dedicated the song to me because he thought it would be more popular if everyone thought it was written about a specific person, which is.. well, whatever. I wouldn’t have cared if he told me about it first, you know? But he just went behind my back and made this decision about my life like I don’t have anything else going on and he didn’t even consult me EVEN THOUGH he had spoken to me right before the concert!” It started coherent, but then it just kind of started exploded on her.</p>
<p>Georgia, bless her soul, was trying to figure out what her daughter was trying to communicate to her, but it just sounded like hysteria to her at this point. Something about Hunter lying to her?</p>
<p>“So then, I go back stage after the concert to be like ‘bro, what the hell? Warn a brotha next time!’ only to overhear another person arguing with Hunter! Turns out, Hunter is in some secret love affair with Preston, who’s another guy in the Bro Squad who is a complete asshole - understandably now, to be fair - and he’s been pretending to want to date other girls so that no one will find out about their relationship!” She took a deep breath. Wow, that was a lot to explain. She hadn’t even started on her feelings for Marcus yet.</p>
<p>Eh, she’d get to that later.</p>
<p>“So I yelled at him and left and didn’t even find out who won. Their victory seems kind of cheap now though, because it’s a big old trashy lie, but if that makes them happy then bully for them.” Ginny looked at her mom to see a look of pure bewilderment on her face.</p>
<p>“So…. Hunter is gay, but he doesn’t want anyone to find out so he goes out with girls but his boyfriend doesn’t like that?” She summed up, amazingly succinctly. Ginny probably needed to learn that skill. She was hella waffly. </p>
<p>“Yeah, pretty much!” Replied Ginny with a smile, finishing off her breakfast before she had to explain any more. They ate the rest of their food quietly, until Georgia came out with,</p>
<p>“I just… I don’t understand why that made you so… happy..?” She sounded like she was asking a question, and was very confused.</p>
<p>“Oh, yeah. I started thinking that no one actually cared about me and that they were all too self-absorbed to notice when there was something wrong with me. There had been some stuff with Maxine as well, just like little things that made me realise that she doesn’t care about me as much as I care about her…” She trailed off, getting distracted by those awful thoughts. Marcus had made her forget about it last night, but it was still something that concerned her. She didn’t know how she was going to stop spending time with Maxine and her friends without there being some big blow out. </p>
<p>“That’s not sounding too great either, sweetie” Georgia was starting to look concerned now. Ginny had been really upset the last time she thought she would have a falling out with her friends.</p>
<p>“Yeah, it’s not. I don’t want to be around them anymore really. They’re starting to make me feel small, all the time. But it’s good that I’m able to recognise that now! I never had friends before, so it’s good to know that there are friends who can have a positive influence on your life and friends who can have a destructive influence. I think these first friends of mine have been destructive, but it’s good for me to be able to recognise that.” </p>
<p>“Well, I’m proud of you, Peach, that sounds very mature.” Georgia wasn’t sure what else she could say to her daughter’s revelation that the first group of friends she had joined was full of toxic people who she didn’t want to spend time with. “So is this a celebration of your freedom from that society’s expectations of you or somethin?”</p>
<p>“You know what, mom. I think that’s exactly what this is. I’m going to do my own thing, hang out with positive people, and leave the negativity behind. I love you.” she ran up and gave her mom a hug.</p>
<p>She’d never be this confident in herself and her ability to thrive without friends if it hadn’t been for Georgia’s constant cheerleader attitude. No matter how bad life got, her mom was always able to make something good out of it. Now, Ginny wanted to do the same thing. She wasn’t going to dwell on lost friendships or worry about how other people would react to her decision to refuse to spend time with them. They didn’t matter anymore. Not really. </p>
<p>Just then, her phone buzzed and she looked down to see she had a message from Maxine. It was a link to a youtube video. Apparently, someone had filmed 3SB’s performance at Battle of the Bands, including multiple shots of Ginny’s reaction to it.</p>
<p>She let out a groan, grateful that the person holding the camera hadn’t caught her initial reaction of anger and horror but still annoyed that this story wouldn’t just die a quick death. She showed the video to her mom, who burst out laughing, exclaiming, “Oh wow, my baby’s famous!” and smiling at Ginny’s incredulous reaction.</p>
<p>She forwarded the message to Hunter with two words: Fix. This.</p>
<p>Let him deal with the blow back from the fact that he had decided to lie to everyone. It wasn’t her idea and it wasn’t her fault. </p>
<p>“On that note, I’ve got to go to work so I can ogle my hot boss. Wish me luck!” she started leaving with a cheeky grin, knowing that Georgia was the one who really had the hots for Joe.</p>
<p>“Hey, you leave poor Joe alone! He’s got enough on his plate without having to fight off horny teenagers!” She yelled back, laughing at her daughter’s newfound confidence. </p>
<p> -</p>
<p>The Sunday morning shift was usually pretty relaxed. There weren’t too many people coming in early for their morning coffee, so they didn’t really get busy until the brunch rush. </p>
<p>At 9:30am, Marcus strolled into the cafe looking like he owned the place. He brandished a flower from behind his back and presented it to Ginny, giving her a kiss and placing the flower behind her ear. He didn’t say a word, he just stared at her like he couldn’t believe she was real. She loved the feeling of power she had when he looked at her like that, like she was capable of anything at all. She smiled and stepped closer to him while he held her around the waist, just looking into each others’ eyes and smiling. There was no one else around, really, except Joe who was feeling super uncomfortable at witnessing this scene between the two teens who had been furiously at each other’s throats the previous day. </p>
<p>Joe cleared his throat, wondering if they’d even be able to hear him. Turns out they couldn’t hear anything he did, so he just went to the back room to escape. He’d be able to hear if a customer came in, at least.</p>
<p>Marcus slowly leaned forward to plant a kiss on Ginny’s smiling lips. He didn’t want it to turn into a full on groping session in the middle of her work place, but it was hard for him to control himself around this girl. “Morning,” he greeted, his voice sounding like he had been eating gravel, once they finally parted.</p>
<p>He’d never get used to being able to do that. She gave him a huge grin and leaned back in to give him a quick peck on the lips.</p>
<p>“Morning,” she whispered in return. She couldn’t believe he had showed up at her work place on a Sunday morning just to hang out with her. Unless, he had actually wanted some coffee?</p>
<p>“Do you want--” she started, but he had started speaking at the same time. She kissed him and laughed, asking him to go first.</p>
<p>“I just came to hang out here with you if that’s alright. I brought some assignments to do for when it gets busy and you can’t stay with me,” he said, looking nervous and uncomfortable. Did he think she would be mad at him for wanting to spend more time with her? That this wasn’t the sweetest thing anyone had ever done for her?</p>
<p>She stood on the tips of her toes so she could reach up and kiss him, trying to pour all her gratitude into the kiss. Before they could start getting carried away, she heard Joe clearing his throat from the back room. Oh, right. Yes. She was at work, where she was paid to do things. Not kiss Marcus Baker. Although, that would have been a fantastic job. </p>
<p>She looked around to see if they had been caught, but luckily it seemed that Joe had just had a cough or something. </p>
<p>She grinned again and stepped back, trying not to get distracted by looking into his eyes again. She cleared her own throat and tried to remember what she wanted to say. Something with words? Oh, right, “I’d be happy for you to come hang out here any time. All day. Every time I’m working. Whenever you wanted, really,” she stopped herself, realising she was just rambling at this point. She blushed and tried to look somewhere else, but she was still grinning like an idiot.</p>
<p>‘He had planned all this, and brought assignments with him, just so he would be able to spend time with me, while I worked’ she thought to herself as she looked back up at him to see his grin matching hers. God, she really hoped no customers came in at all today. </p>
<p>She took his hand and led him to the table with the best Wifi connection, and extra plugs for charging his phone or laptop or whatever he might want to plug in. </p>
<p>He sat on the comfy chair, his eyes never leaving hers, one hand still holding onto hers and his other hand grabbing her waist. She could tell from the look in his eyes that he wanted to pull her down on top of him. She was tempted to let him. She wanted to straddle him and kiss the grin off his lips. But this was her place of work and she actually liked this job. </p>
<p>She looked at him apologetically, and he smiled in understanding. Instead of pulling her entire body down onto his, he settled for pulling her face to his and giving her yet another lingering kiss. She sighed and shivered, still unable to stop grinning, and he probably looked the same.</p>
<p>“Do you want anything to drink or eat?” she asked, her voice light and airy, like nothing in the world could bother her. </p>
<p>“No,” he said reaching for her, “Just you,” he continued, completely unembarrassed to be so disgustingly cheesy. She was too happy to call him out for it and chose to reward it by sitting next to him and pulling him down to her lips instead. </p>
<p>She grabbed the top of his shirt and pulled it towards her; she couldn’t stand to have anything between them but they couldn’t exactly get naked out here on the shop floor. She was involuntarily letting out little whimpers and mewls, as he pushed her into the couch, resting his hand between her thighs. She gasped at the contact and had to pull away.</p>
<p>Her voice was husky from all the kissing, as she whispered, “I can’t fuck you here, Marcus, I’m supposed to be working,” and he thought he was going to come in his pants just from the fact that she was talking dirty, right here, in public.</p>
<p>“I’m going to make you scream when we get you home,” he growled as he attacked her lips again. She tried to stifle her moans, knowing Joe was probably in the back room having a panic attack at the thought of having to tell Georgia that he had to stop her daughter from having sex at work.</p>
<p>“You won’t be able to stay here if you keep distracting me like this,” she whispered back, feeling unbelievably horny and needing to come. “I’ve never wanted to come so badly in a public place. Please, Marcus, touch me. Quickly, before anyone sees,” she begged, trying to be as quiet as possible.</p>
<p>She didn’t need to ask twice. Immediately, he started rubbing her over her work clothes, knowing exactly which spot to hit to make her see stars. She bit her lip hard and squeezed his free hand with hers, trying anything and everything to stop herself from screaming out loud as she came. </p>
<p>When she opened her eyes, Marcus was staring at her like she was a mythical creature he’d heard legends about but never dreamed he’d get to see in real life. She smiled a lazy smile and kissed his lips again, whispering, “Thanks, stud. I’ll return the favour later, on my next break” as she got up and walked away from him. </p>
<p>She busied herself by making him an iced coffee, black. And a muffin. And a mini fruit salad.</p>
<p>It had been a really slow morning. </p>
<p>He was doing so well, concentrating on his assignments and getting his work done. She didn’t want to distract him, but she just wanted to be near him whenever she could. </p>
<p>Joe had emerged from the storage closet when he heard the coffee machine running, hoping that it was safe and he wouldn’t see anything emotionally scarring. Ginny had been pouring an iced coffee and Marcus had been sitting at the top table, working on his laptop. They both looked like the picture of innocence. He knew better, but he wouldn’t dare to say anything.</p>
<p>The rest of her shift passed pretty uneventfully. Maxine and her friends had come in at one point, talking about Hunter’s song and trying to get Ginny to join them at their table, but luckily it had been too busy for her to stop and stay. </p>
<p>She served a crazy, charming mother and son who had come to visit from some part of Texas, and who immediately recognised her accent when she was serving them. They left an insane tip for her, just for stopping to have a conversation about living down south, and she realised she really couldn’t judge a book by its cover. She normally would have assumed that that table wouldn’t have left a tip for her, but they left the biggest one of the day. She heard Maxine and Co. saying horrible things about them as she walked past their table, but what was she to expect from them? That’s exactly the kind of people they were. </p>
<p>She walked past Marcus and smiled when she saw that he was too deeply focused on his work to notice her presence. He had eaten the muffin and fruit salad, so that was good. It was probably about time for her to take a break and eat some lunch. She ordered two club sandwiches from the kitchen and asked Joe what time she should head out for her break. </p>
<p>Once their lunch was ready, she found a secluded space in the staff room and set up a little mini table there so they could sit and eat together. It wasn’t like a date date or anything but it was cute. She found an empty glass and took the flower from behind her ear, placing it in the glass on the middle of the table. She stealthily walked into the cafe and grabbed Marcus’ hand, leading him back to the staff room table with her. </p>
<p>He cupped her cheek and kissed her as soon as they were behind the closed door. She let out a moan and then wrapped one leg around his waist, bringing him closer to her body. He walked her to the nearest wall and pushed her against it, grabbing her hair and grinding against her. He kept letting out these sexy little moans and growls, running his hand up and down her stomach just to feel her skin on his. She rested her head back against the wall and he kissed her neck, running his other hand up higher until it went under her bra. She let out a moan of pleasure, unable to stop herself as he started teasing and massaging her nipples. </p>
<p>Ginny flipped them around so he was the one resting against the wall. She kissed him deeply again, then got down on her knees. She wanted to try something new, and while this was probably the most inappropriate place ever, she just couldn’t control her urges around this guy. His eyes widened when he realised what she was intending and he started to look around, worried that someone might walk in. She looked around and realised that he may have had a point.</p>
<p>She stood up and grabbed hold of his hand, smirking at the disappointed look that briefly flashed across his face.</p>
<p>She led him around the corner to the spot she’d chosen to set up their lunch. It was a bit more secluded and they would have more time to fix themselves up if anyone came into the room. She leaned against the wall again and kissed him, before reversing their positions yet again. This time, when she got down on her knees, she immediately went for his belt and undid his trousers, letting his cock out and running her hand along it. </p>
<p>It was pretty, just like the rest of him. She hadn’t really looked at any cocks in her life, so she took a brief moment to admire it before leaning in to give it a kiss.</p>
<p>Marcus groaned and shuddered like he was in pain. Ginny looked up at him, noticing that his hands were clenched and his eyes were shut tightly. She would bet money that he was reciting the elements on the periodic table right now, and she had to stifle a giggle before it burst out of her, making him feel uncomfortable.</p>
<p>This was all about his pleasure. She kissed the head of his cock and then licked around it a bit. She ignored his reactions and just tried to get to know his cock, with her mouth. She ran her tongue along the underside while running her lips up and down the rest of the shaft, and it twitched. She did it again, this time sucking in while moving, and he let out a long moan, resting his hand on her head. She felt saliva pooling in her mouth, but she sloshed it around instead of swallowing it, making his dick feel slippery and smooth as her mouth slid back and forth over it going faster and faster. This was fun! He was grabbing her hair now and constantly moaning before he warned her, “I’m close. I’m gonna come. Do you want me to pull out?” </p>
<p>She kept going, wanting to feel his come hit the back of her throat. His hips were thrusting into her mouth and his grip tightened in her hair. He was fucking her mouth and she was loving every second of it. He wasn’t going deep enough to make her gag at all, and she was worried that she might have been doing it wrong. All the girls in the pornos took the cocks waaay down their throats and looked like they were going to be sick, but Marcus wasn’t letting her go more than a third of the way down. She’d have to do more research about that later.</p>
<p>He whispered her name urgently, like he was afraid of coming in her mouth, before finally letting go and releasing it all down her throat. She swirled some of it around her mouth, trying to figure out whether or not she liked the taste. It wasn’t much of a taste, to be honest. More of a thick texture and a weird tingly sensation. She didn’t have much of an opinion on it, so she swallowed it down with the rest of the spit that had pooled in her mouth. </p>
<p>Ginny stood up and grabbed a napkin, trying to clean up her face. God, she probably looked like shit after that. The girls in the videos always look so well made up, even after they’d taken a bunch of loads straight to the eyeballs, but not Ginny Miller. Everyone within a five mile radius could probably tell what she had just been doing. She felt a dangerous streak of excitement going through her at the thought. </p>
<p>Marcus was leaning heavily against the wall, still trying to comprehend what had just happened to him. It may very well have been the best experience of his entire life to date. He felt about a hundred times better than the first time he had smoked pot. His mind had this insane clarity now, like he could solve all the world’s problems, but his body felt so relaxed, he didn’t think he’d ever need to move again. He was in bliss. Pure, total bliss. </p>
<p>He slowly opened his eyes and looked over at Ginny. She was wiping her face and smiling a secret little smile, proud of herself for doing something so naughty in such an inappropriate place. He couldn’t believe that she would want to do something like that for him. He hadn’t even asked or thought to ever ask but she just… did it. She wanted it, and it seemed like she had been really enjoying it. He wasn’t even sure that she had been aware of his reactions at all. Seeing her kneeling between his legs, eyes closed as she explored his cock with her mouth was probably the biggest turn on of is life. He was starting to get hard again just thinking about it. He put his cock away before it could get any ideas, and finally noticed the lunch set out on a table in front of them.</p>
<p>Ginny noticed where his attention had become focused and exclaimed, “Oh! Yeah! I got lunch for us. If you’re hungry,” she licked her lips, feeling like she had just had a better meal than the one on the table. Marcus’ gaze immediately travelled back to her, and she could see him mentally stripping her down to nothing. He closed the gap between them again, crushing his mouth to hers and licking along her lips. When she opened her mouth to him, he stuck his tongue straight into her mouth, unafraid to taste the lingering flavour of his come on her tongue. </p>
<p>Ginny had never been this turned on in her life, but she had to pull away from him, checking to see how long she had left on her break. “Damn, only 10 minutes left,” she muttered, looking longingly between the food and the boy in front of her. She couldn’t decide which one she needed more.</p>
<p>Marcus took the decision out of her hands. “Don’t even think about skipping lunch. We are eating this food. No arguments.” He pulled out a chair for her, treating her as though this were a 5 star restaurant and he had to be the ideal gentlemanly date. She giggled at the thought, knowing that his cock had been in her mouth not five minutes ago. Not a bad way to start a date, if she were being completely honest. Still, probably not the most gentlemanly thing to do. </p>
<p>They chatted casually while eating, just enjoying each others’ presence. “I haven’t watched The Office since Jim left Scranton,” he admitted once he finished his food. “It just felt too depressing. I was so invested in him and Pam. I couldn’t believe he’d just up and leave like that.”</p>
<p>Ginny tilted her head to the side and gave him a pitying look. Ah, she remembered those feels. Of course, she had blitzed through the entire thing without a break, but she understood the need to take some time away from a show when the feels got too reals. “What if we watched the next couple seasons together? That way you can get kisses and cuddles whenever you feel too sad about your favourite characters!” she suggested with a cheeky wink. </p>
<p>He thought for a moment, then smiled. “I think I can handle that,” he responded verbally. He didn’t have the heart to tell her that he’d only felt so bad because he had related to Jim and started to feel hopeless when even his favourite TV couple couldn’t make it work. It didn’t matter so much to him now what happened in the show. He had his girl. He didn’t need to live vicariously through anyone else ever again.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0024"><h2>24. Chapter 24</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Some Miller family time :)</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>When Ginny’s shift at work was finished, she asked Marcus to walk her home and then give her a couple hours alone with her family. She felt bad that she hadn’t shared the truth about Marcus with her mom, and it felt like it was something too big and important to keep from the people around her. She wasn’t ashamed of her feelings for him and she wanted the people in her life to know how much she cared for him. </p>
<p>After she explained her thought process to Marcus, he shook his head and smiled. He couldn’t believe his luck, finding this girl who was so adorable and positive, who wasn’t ashamed to be with him or to let anyone know how she felt. She could tell anyone she wanted about them, he didn’t care who knew that she was his. In fact, the more people who knew it, the better. He belonged to Ginny Miller completely and he wanted the world to know. </p>
<p>He wasn’t going to tell his family about it though, he’d let them find out on their own. They’d just find a way to ruin it for him. Ginny was too special for him to let his family come in the way of them. Their opinion of him was so low, they’d probably try to warn her off him. He didn’t think he could handle that. So, while Ginny went home to share her news with her family, he went home to finish up the assignments he had started in the cafe. </p>
<p>Seeing the proud look on Ginny’s face whenever she saw him concentrating on his work was more of a motivator than he could ever have imagined it to be. She really wanted the best for him and she wanted him to do well. Not many people in this town would have cared enough about anyone else to even realise what was good for them or what was bad for them. Ginny really observed everything around her, though. She was constantly aware of her surroundings, even when her attention was focused on him. He wanted her to know that she was safe with him. That she could trust him to start looking after himself and trying to be better. </p>
<p>He had finished the three assignments he had due in the next week and caught up on most of the assignments that had been overdue in the past few weeks. All of that, during 5-hours of her shift. She had squealed with excitement and jumped into his arms when he told her. She hadn’t commented on the fact that he had had so many late assignments in the first place, or the fact that everyone else managed to complete assignments on time every week so it wasn’t a big deal. She just celebrated his achievements with him, always focusing on the positive. He had never had someone in his life willing to do that before. </p>
<p>Whenever he had made steps forward in the past, and foolishly tried to share his proud moments with his family, it was always met with a sarcastic remark comparing him to everyone else who had been doing so much better than him. He felt belittled constantly, and just felt that there was no point in trying if he was going to get hurt every time. It wasn’t worth the effort. He didn’t like to think about that, much. He wasn’t going to let the past ruin what he had with Ginny now. </p>
<p>While she talked to her family, he was going to lock himself in his room and get fully caught up with all the work he had missed. He could probably get started on some extra-credit assignments next week while she was working, too. </p>
<p>He knew he didn’t need to prove to Ginny that he was worth something, that he wasn’t a total failure, that she could trust him to be there for her. He knew she saw him completely, and that she accepted him, flaws and all. But he was going to prove it to her and to himself anyway. He’d be better. For her. For them. He’d make her proud to be with him, so no one could make her feel bad for settling and slumming it with the biggest loser in the school. </p>
<p>-</p>
<p>At home, Ginny was completely oblivious to Marcus’ new revelations, and was just starting to feel a bit nervous about her mom’s reaction to her news. Georgia had been super supportive of Ginny in everything so far, but Ginny knew that Georgia went a bit crazy about… boys. She couldn’t blame her mom for being so wary. Her relationships had been horrible in the past. </p>
<p>She shuddered, thinking of the constant fear she felt living with Austin’s dad. He had seemed so nice at first, always smiling and hugging her mom. When Austin was born though, he started treating Ginny like she was a nuisance who was stealing her mom’s attention from his son. She had realised that he had never said a single word directly to her, always talking about her through her mom, to make it seem like he cared about her kid, even though he never acknowledged her as a person. Then he started calling her “Mongrel” when no one else was around… Yeahhhh, no Ginny definitely understood why her mom was wary of men. </p>
<p>Marcus wasn’t like that though. She needed to help her mom to see it. All she knew was what Ellen told her about her messed up son, but he was so much more than that. He was so kind and thoughtful. He was always completely present during their conversations and he listened so completely. Whenever she was talking, she could see her own emotions mirrored perfectly on his face. His empathy and understanding of her mental health was… incredible. It wasn’t just the fact that he was the most gorgeous thing she had ever seen. Loads of people in this town were super attractive. He had a precious, kind soul, and Ginny could tell that he would do anything to make her feel happy. He’d been doing it constantly since the day they met. </p>
<p>Well, technically not true since he had snuck into her room and taken her virginity. That would be a tough one to explain, honestly. Ginny had been surprised at Georgia’s restraint after that night - she had fully expected her mom to march across the street and start shooting. Southerners with tempers were not people to be messed with. Ok, so maybe she would start by explaining that Marcus had been the positive friend who was helping her to deal with all the toxic people, and then she would slowly, over the next couple weeks, try to warm her mom up to the idea of them being more than friends.</p>
<p>Yes! This would be the start of an incredible spin campaign, turning Marcus Baker from every mother’s nightmare into the ideal son-in-law. She’d have her mom begging for them to get together by the time she was done with her. This was going to be tricky. She’d need to explain the plan to Marcus as well - he probably had no idea how much her mom likely hated him. God fucking damnit.</p>
<p>When Ginny walked into the kitchen, she almost missed the tense interaction that her mom was having on the phone. She seemed badly shaken and was trying to find out who was on the other end of the phone. Ginny marched up to her, took the phone from her ear and led her to a seat, rubbing soothing circles into her mom’s back. She had never seen her looking this spooked.</p>
<p>She spoke into the phone in a low growl, “If I ever find out who’s on the other end of this call, you better have a good reason for making my mom feel this worried,” and she slammed the phone down.</p>
<p>Her mom was still staring into space. She looked like she was completely disassociating. Ginny called for Austin to help her move their mom to a sofa so she could sit more comfortably. They stroked her hair and her back, whispering soothing words to her, trying to get her back to them. Ginny had never seen her mom like this and she had no idea what to do. She didn’t want to start crying and freaking out in front of Austin but she was beginning to lose it. </p>
<p>She picked up her phone and called the only person she could think of who would help. It rang a few times, and she was desperately hoping it wouldn’t go to voicemail. Finally, the call connected,</p>
<p>“Dad?” She asked, trying not to sound like she was overwhelmed and on the verge of a panic attack.</p>
<p>“Ginny, what’s wrong?” Well, clearly, she hadn’t managed to hide the fear in her voice.</p>
<p>“There’s something wrong with mom. I just got home and she was on the phone to someone and they were not saying anything and she sounded so scared and the call had no caller ID and she’s just sitting on the sofa looking into space and she’s not reacting to anything me or Austin do or say! Is she ok? What do I do? Has she ever done this before?” Ginny was definitely well on her way to panicking and Austin was now sitting next to her, rubbing soothing circles on her back as well as their mom’s. </p>
<p>She leaned onto him to rest her head on his shoulder. He was such a strong person; she was so glad to have him in her life. </p>
<p>“Ok, sweetie, I want you to take a deep breath. Can you do that for me?” He said, in his calm, deep, melodic voice. Just hearing the certainty in her dad’s voice made Ginny feel safer already. There were grownups who could help now, she wasn’t on her own. She took a deep, shaky breath.</p>
<p>When Zion was satisfied that his daughter was calmed and in control of her breathing, he continued, “Now, sweetie, I need you to put me on speaker phone so I can talk to your mom. I’ve seen her like this only a couple times and sometimes it helps for her to hear a familiar song to pull her out of it. Can you put me on speaker phone?” </p>
<p>“Yeah, ok. You’re on speaker.” She whispered, afraid to speak too loudly in case it made her mom upset. </p>
<p>“Georgia. Mary. Hun, you’re okay. You have your kids with you and they’re safe. No one is going to harm your family, do you hear me? They are safe.” his words were having no impact on her mom, but Ginny was starting to feel worried again. Why did he have to keep saying that they were safe? Were they not safe? Had there been times before when their lives were in real danger?</p>
<p>He started singing a lullaby that Ginny remembered her mom used to sing to put them to sleep when they were little. It always calmed them down and made them feel at peace. She hadn’t heard it in years but she remembered every word.</p>
<p>Ginny started to sing along quietly, rubbing the back of her mom’s neck, the way her mom did for her anytime she was overwhelmed. Austin joined in, rubbing massaging circles into Georgia’s hand, like she did for him when he was upset. They sang the song a couple times, until Georgia let out a huge gasp, followed by another, and another. She had tears streaming down her face and she looked a mixture of embarrassed, mortified, and confused. </p>
<p>Zion’s calming voice came through the phone’s speakers and brought everyone’s attention back to the present, “There’s my girl. You’re okay. Everything’s going to be okay, do you hear me Georgia?”</p>
<p>She whispered in a small voice, sounding so tired and afraid, “You don’t know that, Zion.”</p>
<p>His deep, rumbling laugh sounded through the speakers. “Of course I know that. You’re Georgia Miller, the strongest person in the world. Nothing could dare to mess with you or your family and live to tell the tale,” his voice was so strong, so certain - it was impossible to disagree with him. Her mom smiled and wiped her eyes, remembering what a bad bitch she really was. </p>
<p>“Well, sometimes, even the strongest people forget that sometimes, I guess,” she smiled, trying to put on a brave face, but Ginny could see through it now. She could see how scared her mom was, constantly. How long had she been going through this? Alone, with no one to turn to.</p>
<p>“It’s good that you’ll always have me here to remind you then,” Zion responded, smooth as ever. “Listen, I’ve been staying in my place in Boston for the past couple weeks and I’ve been meaning to ask if I can come visit…” he trailed off, sounding a bit insecure, to Ginny’s surprise.</p>
<p>Georgia didn’t get a chance to respond - it was drowned out by the cries of celebration from Ginny and Austin, “Yes!! Daddy, I’ve missed you so much!” and “Yes! Yes! Yes! Zion’s coming!!” respectively. </p>
<p>Zion laughed, pleased to have been able to elicit such a positive reaction. “Well, in that case, you can expect a visit from me in the near future. Until then, Ginny, can I have a word with your mom in private?”</p>
<p>Ginny looked to Georgia to make sure she’d be alright talking to her dad alone. She knew that her mom was feeling particularly vulnerable today and she didn’t want her dad to push her over the edge somehow. At Georgia’s nod, Ginny handed her the phone, warning him, “Okay, dad, but don’t you dare do anything to upset her right now!” and ushering Austin into her room.  </p>
<p>She didn’t want him to be alone right now, but she also didn’t know how to distract him from all the scary things that were happening in their lives. She heard Georgia going into her room, still talking to Zion, and was starting to regret giving her her phone. She really wanted to talk to Marcus, but she had no idea what his number was without her phone. This wasn’t the 90s. No one had to memorise phone numbers anymore. </p>
<p>Ginny glanced at Austin, who was looking nervously around and slowly retreating into himself, likely panicking about what could possibly have made their mom so scared. Ginny didn’t regret calling him to help her with their mom. He deserved to know what was going on just as much as she did. She needed to let him know that they would be alright though. </p>
<p>“Hey, look at me,” she called out to him, getting his attention, “You did such a great job down there, helping to keep me and mom calm. I don’t know what I would have done without you there, Austin. I’m so glad you’re my baby brother.” She walked up to him and sat next to him on the bed, placing her arms in a protective circle around him.</p>
<p>He spoke in a quiet, unsure voice. “Is mom going to be okay? Do we have to move again?” </p>
<p>Ginny didn’t want to lie to him, but she didn’t want to scare him either. “You heard what Zion said, no one messes with our mom and gets away with it. She used to worry like that a lot when we were babies, so she had to deal with it on her own. But guess what?” She asked, trying to lift the mood.</p>
<p>“What?” he responded warily, not sure where this was going.</p>
<p>“Now, she has her two brave sidekicks who won’t let anything happen to her ever again! She doesn’t know how fiercely we’ll protect her, because she’s never had anyone on her side before. So we have to show her that we can keep her safe. That we’re even tougher than she knows, because we are pure magic. No one messes with us and gets away with it!” At this point, Ginny was really starting to get into her speech, and really believing what she was saying. She was also, feeling a little bit silly.</p>
<p>She stood up abruptly and pretended to be holding a sword above her head, marching in front of an army.</p>
<p>In a strong, clear voice, she started shouting, “I see in your eyes, the same fear that would TAKE the heart of me!” and Austin stood up at attention, also pretending to hold up a sword. He was giggling but trying his best to look like a serious soldier, fierce and ready for battle.</p>
<p>Ginny continued, now pretending to ride a horse as she addressed her army of one, “A day may come when the courage of Millers fails, when we FORSAKE our friends and break ALL the bonds of fellowship, BUT IT IS NOT THIS DAY!” she shouted, wielding her imaginary sword higher on her head and thanking her mom for being so obsessed with Lord of the Rings that Ginny could recite Aragorn’s speech off by heart. Mmm he was such a heart throb.</p>
<p>Her dramatic reenactment of the speech was really starting to energise her now, and she could see the excitement in Austin’s eyes at the idea of being a really brave, strong soldier, ready to attack anyone who tried to harm their mom. </p>
<p>“AN HOUR of wolves and shattered shields, when the age of men comes CRASHING DOWN! BUT IT IS NOT THIS DAY! This day, we FIGHT! By all that you hold dear on this good Earth, I bid you: STAND, MEN OF THE WEST!” </p>
<p>At the end of her speech, Austin let out a HUGE battle cry and stormed towards her, following her as she ran out of her room and down the stairs ready for battle. She wasn’t a hundred percent sure where she was leading him, but she knew they needed to put on their shoes while screaming their battle cry throughout the house. </p>
<p>“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH” they shouted as they laced up their shoes and ran out the front door. “AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH” they continued as they ran across the street after checking to make sure there were no cars coming.</p>
<p>As they started approaching the Bakers’ house, Ginny stopped and put her hands on Austin’s shoulders. </p>
<p>“Now, we are headed to the mountains to convince that ghostly army to come and join us and kill all the bad guys. I do not expect you to come with me on this journey.” She said, putting a serious look on her face.</p>
<p>Austin’s face lit up as he remembered the scene she was quoting and he thought for a moment to try to remember the response given by Legolas and Gimli. He stood up tall and raised his hand elegantly, imitating the graceful movements of an elf. “Have you learned NOTHING about the stubbornness of DWARVES?” He responded, in his fanciest voice.</p>
<p>It was so comical, Ginny could barely keep a straight face. </p>
<p>When he hunched over, pretending to be Gimli, she lost it. She just burst out laughing as he tried his best to produce a Scottish accent, saying, “Ya might as well accept et. We’re going with ya, laddie.”</p>
<p>Ginny grabbed her brother’s hand and they marched up to the Bakers’ front door together, looking like a team on a mission. She expected him to  hide behind her when Mrs. Baker opened the door, as he was usually quite wary of strange people and it made him shut down a bit when he was around them. But Ginny was very impressed to see her younger brother standing straight and confidently with his hands on his waist and a no-nonsense look on his face. He didn’t know why they were here, but he was supporting his sister and he meant business.</p>
<p>“Ginny! And.. Austin! Hello, is everything alright?” Mrs. Baker had a big smile on her face, but her expression looked both scared and confused. It was kind of creepy, to be honest, but Ginny placed a big innocent smile on her face and plowed on, unafraid.</p>
<p>“Hi, Mrs. Baker! Is Marcus at home?” She asked in a sweeter-than-sugar innocent voice. Sure, she was laying it on a bit thick, but she was kind of pissed off with the way Marcus’ family had been treating him and she didn’t want to give these ruthless people any more reason to make his life difficult.</p>
<p>As Ginny could have predicted, the horror and confusion on Mrs. Baker’s face grew as she realised that she’d have to go and check to see if her delinquent son was in his room where he was supposed to be. Ginny’s smile grew bigger and more expectant, waiting for the woman to go and get her son. Mrs. Baker spluttered something incoherent and went upstairs, most likely muttering about her low expectations of her son’s behaviour. </p>
<p>Ginny smiled down at Austin and rolled her eyes, to show him that there was nothing to worry about. He was still standing there, stoic and disciplined, looking like the perfect  little bodyguard ready to attack at the first sign of danger. She giggled and nodded her approval at her brother as she waited for Marcus to come downstairs.</p>
<p>He looked worried and confused when he rushed down the stairs to see them standing at his front door. He immediately walked right up to Ginny and asked, “What’s going on? Is everything ok?” looking between her and her brother in confusion. Ginny smiled and squeezed his hand. She didn’t want to get into all the details right here, but she needed him to know that there was something wrong. </p>
<p>She looked down at Austin for strength and he nodded at her encouragingly. “Um..” she began, feeling a lot less confident now that they were here. What was Marcus even supposed to do to help? Did she really want to involve him in her family drama so soon after they started… whatever they were doing?</p>
<p>With incredible bravery that she really didn’t expect from her baby brother, Austin spoke up when he noticed that she was hesitating. He didn’t know why they were here, or how this boy could help them, but he knew it was important to Ginny and she always helped him with things that were important to him.</p>
<p>“Lord Aragorn wishes for your assistance in battle!” He demanded, putting on his best Legolas impression. He stomped his foot and stood at even straighter attention. Ginny looked at him and smiled, forgetting what she had been worrying about and remembering why she was seeking Marcus’ comfort during her time in need.</p>
<p>“Erm, yes!” She continued, feeling emboldened by her brother’s presence and grabbing onto his hand for strength. “There’s been a bit of a… situation. At home. With my mom. We’re all a bit freaked out to be honest and I just don’t know how to keep us entertained and distracted while she deals with it, so I was wondering if you had any ideas?” she whispered in a rush, feeling at once embarrassed and proud of herself for seeking help. “I can explain more when we get home but I just…” she trailed off, not really sure what she was asking.</p>
<p>She looked up to see Marcus thinking hard with a look of determination on his face. He stood at attention and raised his hand to his forehead, declaring, “Gondor is ready to answer your call for aid!” and bowing to Austin. </p>
<p>Ginny giggled, and Austin sighed, “We already HAVE Gondor’s aid. You’re the ghost army in the mountain!” unbelieving that this kid had managed to get it so wrong. Ginny’s laughter grew as she saw the bewilderment on Marcus’ face. </p>
<p>“Well where’s the sword that was broken, then? Us mountain ghosts can’t come out unless we see proof that this is the true King of Gondor!” he responded, indignantly. </p>
<p>Austin gasped, clearly having forgotten that they needed the blade to convince the mountain ghosts to come fight with them. He looked at Ginny, yelling, “We don’t have the blade!! Ginny!” and Ginny rolled her eyes. This was too much.</p>
<p>She crossed her hand over her chest in protest. She saw the excitement in Austin’s eyes and couldn’t resist - she decided to play along. She brandished an imaginary sword from behind her back and held it out to Marcus, sighing, “There, happy?” </p>
<p>Marcus took the imaginary sword from her hands and inspected it slowly, carefully, looking for any signs of forgery. Austin was holding his breath, desperately waiting to find out if his sister had managed to brandish the correct weapon, or if she had screwed it up like girls always seemed to do.</p>
<p>When Marcus nodded in agreement and handed the sword back to Ginny, Austin let out a sigh of relief and a “phew!”, glad that they had succeeded in convincing this new ally to join them. He shot an annoyed look at Ginny for almost jeopardising the mission, but she was just staring at Marcus trying to hold back a laugh. </p>
<p>“Well, are you coming or not?” she asked eventually, but he just kept looking at her with a weird smile on his face. Austin was confused. Were they trying to communicate telepathically? </p>
<p>Eventually, he responded, “I just need to gather my men. You head back to the camp and I’ll meet you there,” with a big smile on his face, his eyes never leaving his sister’s. Teenagers were weird.</p>
<p>He pulled Ginny by the arm, shouting, “Come ON, Ginny! You heard the man! We need to head back to camp and get the rest of our army ready! Let’s go!!” but she was just looking at Marcus and smiling. He really hoped they didn’t keep doing that all night because it was starting to get on his nerves. </p>
<p>When he had finally dragged his sister around the corner, she snapped out of the weird spell she had seemed to be under. Had Ginny and Marcus been cursed to lose all their senses when they made eye contact? He’d have to keep an eye on them and make sure it didn’t happen while he was around. He was going to have his work cut out for him, protecting his mom AND his sister all the time.  Good thing he had an entire army to rely on for help. </p>
<p>-</p>
<p>So, it turned out that when Marcus had claimed he needed to “Gather his men,” what he really meant was that he was going to fill a giant bag with all the games he could get his hands on in five minutes. Ginny couldn’t believe the sight in front of her when he knocked on their front door carrying a massive duffle bag on his shoulder, looking like Jack Skellington pretending to be Santa Claus. </p>
<p>Austin came running to the front door and dragged Marcus to the living room by his free hand, not allowing him and Ginny to fall under their curse. He sat firmly on the couch in between them as Marcus started emptying the bag, making sure he didn’t accidentally look at his sister for too long. He soon quickly got distracted by all the board games that were coming out of the bag.</p>
<p>“Marvel Monopoly! Awesome!!” he exclaimed as he rushed to pick up the box and look at the contents. “They’ve got Doctor Doom on here, Ginny!! Look!” </p>
<p>There was no way Ginny Miller was ever playing monopoly with that boy again though. “Austin,” she groaned, “You KNOW how you get when you play monopoly! I’ve still got the scars from last time!” she whined, pulling up her pant leg as a reminder. </p>
<p>“Ginny, I didn’t mean to flip the table on you, you knoooow that! I’ve apologised a million times for that!!” he complained in return.</p>
<p>Ginny was absolutely not budging on the issue. “You literally hulked out when I bought the last Orange that you wanted and THREW THE TABLE AT ME!” she yelled, reminding him of why their mom and got rid of all copies of monopoly in the house. </p>
<p>Austin looked so sad and defeated, but Ginny knew better than to trust his little innocent act. “I promise not to do that again this time! I’m older and wiser now! You can trust me!” he pleaded, looking at her with his big, blue eyes.</p>
<p>Marcus joined in the pleading, looking at her with a dramatically sad look, saying “Yeah, you can trust us, we won’t throw the table this time!” secretly giving Austin a high five behind their backs.</p>
<p>“No. Maybe later if we can play all these other games without you losing it every time you don’t win.” she relented, unable to resist both of their sad faces. She was definitely going to regret that. </p>
<p>Marcus and Austen let out a celebratory WOOP! And high fived repeatedly. Ginny sighed, already regretting her decision to seek out Marcus for help, but secretly loving the bond that was clearly growing between her brother and her… person. </p>
<p>-</p>
<p>An hour later, Georgia Miller came downstairs to witness a sight she didn’t fully understand. Her two children were sitting, looking at the TV screen hunched forward with a look of great concentration in their eyes. There was a tension in the air that made her wary of breaking the silence. In between them, the Baker boy from across the street was holdin a controller, movin through one of those Mario castles. His character seemed to be a little blue toadstool though. </p>
<p>She was caught off guard, by her son’s jubilant voice whisper-yelling, “You just need ONE more coin, Marcus and then me and Ginny are back in the game! Just one more coin!”</p>
<p>“Shh! We don’t want him to die again!” his sister responded, none of them taking their eye off the screen.</p>
<p>“Get that box, there’s gotta be a coin in there!” exclaimed Austin, and Marcus followed his direction, jumping over the lava and avoiding the spinning fire stick. </p>
<p>“YES!! WE’RE BACK IN!!” yelled Austin as he grabbed his controller again. “Don’t break my bubble until you get to a safe part, remember!”</p>
<p>They were so focused on the screen, Georgia felt that she could dance through the living room and they’d have no idea.</p>
<p>“I’m gonna die. I’m gonna fall into the lava again and die!” she could hear Ginny muttering under her breath. “AH! I’m gonna die!!” </p>
<p>Georgia hadn’t heard the Baker boy speaking this entire time and was, quite frankly, confused as to why he was sittin in her living room after all he had put her daughter through. </p>
<p>“Hey. No, you’re doing great. Just follow my lead and jump where I jump.” </p>
<p>“Okay,” she heard her daughter respond. Their little characters didn’t look like they were about to die or anythin, but the Baker boy suddenly yelled out to stop Ginny from doin something.</p>
<p>“No! Wait, don’t hit that box! It probably has mushrooms in it so we have to save it for when Austin’s ready to unbubble. Austin, you ready?” his voice seemed to have a calming effect on Ginny and Austin, who she knew didn’t usually respond well to other people being in his space.</p>
<p>“Yeah! Un-bubble me! I want the mushroom!” he yelled with excitement, bouncing up and down on his seat. </p>
<p>“Alright. Austin, you go to the left, Ginny you go for the one on the right, I’ll try to catch the one in the middle. Ready?” </p>
<p>Georgia was amazed by the way they were communicating and working together, making sure Austin was fully included the whole time. She had never seen Austin coming out of his shell so much. He had been through such a hard time after his dad went to jail, and everything that happened with Kenny. Georgia had been worried that he would never be open to other presences in his life. He was so concerned about making sure other people couldn’t enter their family, that it would be just the three of them. He hadn’t made any friends at school, despite Georgia’s efforts, and he always hid in his room when he heard the doorbell ringing, unwilling to be around anyone but Ginny and Georgia.</p>
<p>This little scene was proving to her that there was nothin wrong with her little boy. The other kids at his school were just little shits. Maybe she needed to have a word with his teachers about bullying. </p>
<p>Out of nowhere, all three of the kids in front of her jumped up and started yellin and screamin in celebration. When Austin jumped into the Baker boy’s arms, screaming “We did it!! We did it!!” and Georgia watched them spin around together, laughing and smiling, she felt her heart warm.</p>
<p>She couldn’t resist joining in with the celebrations, asking, “What’s going on here?” and bringing the attention in the room to her. Austin immediately jumped down and ran over to give her a hug, explaining enthusiastically all the games they had been playing with Marcus. The boy in question was standing very still, looking like he was terrified to make the wrong move.</p>
<p>“Oh really?” Georgia responded, after Austin told her Marcus was his new best friend, looking over to see Marcus’ reaction. He grinned and raised his hand in the air, waiting for Austin to high five it. After Austin jumped up to high five his new buddy, he launched into another exciting story about how they’ve created an army to fight against anyone who tries to hurt her, and Georgia had to bite back the tears that started forming in her eyes.</p>
<p>She looked over at Ginny to see her daughter looking at her with concern and worry evident in her eyes. She gestured for Ginny to come over to give her a hug, and she immediately ran into her arms, squeezing her tightly. Georgia let out a shaky breath and whispered, “Thank you” into Ginny’s ear, and Ginny looked up at her and smiled. </p>
<p>“We’re here for you mom. Always. If anyone tries to hurt you, they’ll have to get through us, first,” she announced, trying to convey all the seriousness the could. She wanted her mom to know that she wasn’t alone anymore, that they would be in this together. No matter what.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0025"><h2>25. Chapter 25</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>More Miller family time &lt;3</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Ok, I found time to read your comments after work today and they made me really happy so I'm posting this chapter early, but I will DEFINITELY not be able to post more chapters during the week after this! Enjoy...</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The evening had been perfect. Ginny couldn’t have planned it better if she had tried. Austin kept Marcus so busy, he didn’t have time to give away the fact that he and Ginny were feeling anything towards each other, other than friendship. Any time it looked like he was going to start staring at her, Austin had a new idea of something brilliant to do, stopping them from getting lost in each others’ eyes. Ginny kept sneaking glances at her mom to try to gauge her reaction to having Marcus at the house, and she was grateful to see a look of calm awe each time her mom looked at Austin spending time with Marcus. </p><p>Ginny could understand her mom’s feelings. She couldn’t ever remember a time when Austin was so happy and carefree in the presence of someone other than Ginny and Georgia. And Zion. He always used to hide silently whenever a babysitter came over, going to bed almost as soon as he was left alone with them. He was even worse around the guys that mom brought home. Yet, for some reason, he had warmed instantly to Marcus. Ginny had to work hard to control her expression when she saw Marcus making her brother smile and joke around, because she knew her mom was watching. </p><p>She was really surprised, then, when her mom asked Marcus if he wanted to stay for dinner. Before anyone else had a chance to respond, Austin had immediately yelled, “Yes!!!” and requested spaghetti bolognese. Marcus grinned sheepishly and agreed, before being immediately pulled back to his conversation with Austin. It seemed that Marcus was explaining how to play Risk, which apparently made Monopoly look like it was made for babies. Austin was absolutely mesmerised as he listened to Marcus explain about battle strategies and the different army pieces that could be used to take over the world. </p><p>Georgia took the opportunity while the boys were occupied to have a serious conversation with her daughter. </p><p>“Peach, I know I owe you an explanation for what’s been happening recently. I don’t even know where to start, but I just want to thank you so much for how you handled everything today. There’s been a lot going on that I was trying to shield you from, but I know you deserve to know what’s been happening.” </p><p>Ginny was in shock. She hadn’t expected her mom to cave so easily. She thought it would have been an epic battle, trying to find out what had had her so spooked. </p><p>Georgia took a deep breath and continued, “I don’t want to cause you any alarm, and I want you to know that I have the situation mostly under control.” </p><p>“Kenny’s ex-wife is contesting the will. She doesn’t think we should get any of the money that Kenny left to us, and she’s been trying to intimidate me with her lawyers, and PIs and now these calls to the house, to make me give up on fighting against her. All my bank accounts were locked, as her lawyers convinced a judge to freeze my assets until this is all taken care of.” </p><p>Ohhhhhhhh shit. </p><p>This was so much worse than anything Ginny could have imagined. Kenny’s bitch of an ex-wife was trying to ruin her mom’s life because she wanted more money? So now, her mom was trying to survive with no money, even though she knew she was supposed to have enough to survive on? How was that fair? Was Kenny’s ex-wife having all her accounts closed? </p><p>“But?? How? Is that even legal?!” Ginny asked, trying to make sense of what she had just heard. </p><p>“Yeah, hon, it is. And until this whole mess is sorted, they’re going to keep my money from me and try to scare me away from it.” She finished, wincing at the possibility that she might have shared too much with her daughter. No, she needed to know the truth of what was going on, and she knew she’d be able to handle this small amount of truth. </p><p>“Have you been able to pay for the house and electricity and everything?” Ginny asked, worried that they might get kicked out to live on the streets at some point.</p><p>“Yes, sweetie. My job at the mayor’s office covers all that and I got a couple credit cards to cover everything else. Financially, I have it all covered. I just don’t know what these people are going to try to do next to try to scare me off. They’ve clearly managed to find our home number, so they know where we live. We just have to be real careful about who we talk to for a while. Can you do that?” </p><p>Ginny’s face hardened at the thought that these people were going to such cruel and threatening lengths just so they could have more money. Was it really so important to them that they wanted to ruin someone else’s life, even though they were clearly able to survive without the extra inheritance? Hadn’t her mom been through enough in her life?</p><p>“I’ll keep an eye out mom, and I won’t say a word to anyone about our past. If they think they can scare us into hiding away, they’re messing with the wrong people. What can I do to help?” She let all the venom she was feeling for these mysterious attackers pour into her voice, to let her mom know that she had a strong ally in Ginny. Maybe she couldn’t do much financially, but physically and emotionally, she’d be here with her mom every step of the way.</p><p>Georgia looked like the weight of the world had been taken from her shoulders. Ginny couldn’t imagine how horrible her mom must have felt, trying to deal with all of this on her own while presenting a positive image of herself so her kids didn’t have to worry. When Georgia had been Ginny’s age, she had been living on the streets, alone with no one in the world to turn to. Now, Ginny was determined to make sure her mom didn’t have to feel that way again. It would be them against the world. </p><p>Georgia smiled at the fierce look on her daughter’s face and cupped her face in her hand. “You’re doing enough by just listening and helping me, right now, sweetie. I’ll let you know if I think of anything you could do to help. Just… please be extra careful.” she pleaded, worried that these people could try to hurt her kids to get back at her. She wouldn’t put it past them. Was she putting too much pressure on Ginny?</p><p>Ginny leaned forward and kissed her mom’s head. “I’ve got your back, mom. An extra pair of eyes will make it easier to find these asshole who are trying to ruin our lives. Now, onto business. Is there anyone new in town acting suspicious? They must be around here somewhere if they’ve pinpointed where we live,” In her mind, Ginny was ready to create a conspiracy wall, like when Charlie got a job working in the mail room. She needed paper, and string, and push pins, to connect all the dots. </p><p>“Nothin much. Ellen mentioned that there was a man asking about this house, saying he wanted to buy it, but he never contacted me. And the house isn’t for sale.” Georgia remembered, trying hard to think of anything else. </p><p>“That’s a good start! Did you get a description of what he looked like? What his voice was like? What kind of car did he drive?” Ginny was getting excited now. This was a lead! She’d be able to talk to Mrs. Baker about it and investigate, really do something useful to help her mom. </p><p>Georgia laughed at her daughter’s enthusiasm, and tried to think back to her conversation with Ellen. It had been too brief, and she hadn’t thought to ask all these questions. She had assumed that Zion was in town, but now that she had spoken to him, she knew it definitely had not been him. God, that conversation had happened quite a while ago. How long had these people known where she lived?!</p><p>Seeing the panicked look in her mom’s eyes, Ginny immediately regretted asking for so many details when she knew her mom was still vulnerable. “Hey. We don’t need to think about all this now. I can talk to Mrs. Baker and find out everything I need to know. Let’s get started on dinner.” She suggested, and went to collect all the ingredients for a spaghetti bolognese. </p><p>As she helped her mom to prepare dinner, Ginny couldn’t help but try to figure out who the mysterious strangers out to get her mom might have been. She thought back to the Southern lady who gave her a huge tip that morning at work. She hadn’t looked like someone who could afford to leave such a generous tip just for some coffee, and she had shown a lot of interest in Ginny and where she lived in Texas. Ginny resolved to keep an eye on that in the future. </p><p>-</p><p>Dinner that night could have been tense, had it not been for Austin’s excited retelling of everything he had done with Marcus that day. He was absolutely dominating the conversation and there was an air of wonder and excitement, even though Ginny was barely paying attention to what he was saying. Something about strategies and war.</p><p>Georgia was doing a much better job of listening to her son, because quite frankly, she was amazed to see this side of him. She was starting to wonder if she could pay Marcus to come over every week just to get Austin more comfortable with people outside the house. The boy was nodding along enthusiastically to everything Austin said and adding extra information that Austin forgot to relay. </p><p>He looked like he was genuinely enjoying spending time with her little boy. And why shouldn’t he? Austin was a treat! Perhaps he was just too mature for the other kids in his class. He was, after all, way ahead of them in his reading level. The kid loved to escape into his books, so he had a larger vocabulary than any kid his age should have. You’d only know that if he felt comfortable enough talking to you, which he rarely did at school with his teachers. They called him a ‘selective mute’ and wrote him off as a lost cause most times, but he was as sharp as they came. </p><p>After dinner was cleared, Ginny stood up straight away to clear the plates, taking them back to the kitchen sink. She hadn’t said a word through dinner, clearly lost in her own thoughts. Georgia really hoped she hadn’t made a mistake by sharing her worries with her daughter. Ginny was old enough to know the truth. She was dealing with the fallout anyway, so she might as well be aware of why all these things were happening. </p><p>It didn’t escape her notice that Marcus had been sending worried looks her daughter’s way all through dinner. When Ginny got up from the table, Georgia could see that he’d had to physically restrain himself from standing up to follow her out of the room. His face, so expressive, showed how worried he was about her, before his attention was drawn back into conversation with Austin. Interesting. She needed to talk to her daughter to find out what was going on there! Not that she could blame the girl. The boy was cute and sensitive and great with kids. What’s not to love?</p><p>-</p><p>After dinner, Georgia went upstairs with Austin to help him get ready for school the next day. She needed to give Marcus a break from Austin, or he’d never come back. Her heart melted when Austin ran and hugged Marcus around the waist, making him promise to come back during the week to keep teaching him how to play Risk. </p><p>Back in the kitchen, Ginny’s thoughts were going a mile a minute. She knew she wouldn’t be able to solve all of Georgia’s problems immediately, but she just wanted to get started on finding out who this guy was, sniffing around their house and threatening her mom. </p><p>All of her tension slipped away as Marcus walked into the kitchen and wrapped his arms around her, leaning down to kiss her neck. She turned around so she could face him, letting out a sigh and smiling at the sight before her. Ugh, how did he manage to look so gorgeous, literally all the time?</p><p>He looked worried, his eyes roaming her face and body, trying to catalogue what could have made her so upset. He seemed to be taking in every detail about her, from her slightly red eyes to the water stains on her shirt from where she’d been washing up. </p><p>“What’s wrong?” he finally asked, when he couldn’t figure out what had happened just by staring into her eyes. His hand traced soft lines along the side of her face. She closed her eyes and leaned into his soothing touch, letting out a heavy breath.</p><p>“My mom. She’s been going through so much. She kind of… disassociated today? People have been making threatening phone calls to our house,” she explained, finally feeling the exhaustion from the stress of the day. </p><p>At his questioning look, she continued, “Apparently, her dead husband’s ex-wife is mad that he left my mom money in the will, so she’s hired some people to harass my mom into giving up the money. Her lawyers convinced some judge to freeze all my mom’s assets while she contests the will, and my mom has been trying to deal with all this, on top of grieving her dead husband. She just opened up to me today while you were playing with Austin.” </p><p>She leaned heavily onto him, pressing her face into his chest, and let out a groan, whining, “I’m sorry you’ve been sucked into my family’s crazy drama. There’s ALWAYS something. That’s why we’re always moving.”</p><p>He didn’t say anything in return. He just chuckled and started stroking her hair and her back, letting her say everything she needed to in order to feel better.</p><p>“This is the thirteenth place I’ve lived in, in my life. Anytime my mom feels threatened, she decides it’s time to start again somewhere new,” she didn’t want to move again, especially not now that she and Marcus could finally have something together. The thought brought tears to her eyes.</p><p>“Now, there’s a real threat facing us, and they know where we live…” she trailed off, not wanting to finish that thought. “This place was supposed to be different but… I guess not.” She sighed. She hoped she was wrong, but the more she thought about it, the more she understood that they’d probably be on the move again sooner than later.</p><p>“I’m so sorry,” she bawled into his chest. He squeezed her tighter and pulled her back so she could look into his eyes. He used his thumb to wipe the tears from her face and then smiled at her.</p><p>“If you think you’re getting away from me that easily, Ginny Miller, you’ll have to think again,” he said, trying to sound all mysterious and threatening, but just ended up sounding like batman. At least it made stop crying and start laughing. That was a start.</p><p>“Now, these people who are calling the house and threatening your mom, do we have any information about them at all?” He asked, wanting to help in any way that he could.</p><p>This set Ginny on a new mission to gather some pens and paper so they could plot out what they already knew about the mysterious stalker harassing her mom. Once she had a decent selection, she and Marcus spread out on the table and started mind mapping.</p><p>“So, there was a guy around here, asking about this house and claiming he wanted to buy it a couple weeks ago. Apparently he spoke to your mom and she asked my mom about it. We need to find out everything your mom remembers about that encounter - what did he look like, what was his voice like? Did he have a car? What was he wearing? Any scars or identifying tattoos?” As she verbalised each question, she added it to the mind map.</p><p>“This morning, when I was at work, there was a lady and her son in the cafe, asking me questions about where I’m from in the south. They left me a huge tip,” now that she said it out loud, it didn’t sound like much, but she still added it to another mind map, including all the information she could recall about the woman and her son. She had long blonde hair, blue eyes, and a big mouth with straight white teeth. She had a heavy southern accent, and she was dressed in some tiny jeans shorts, a white wife-beater, and a baseball cap. Her son, or her young accomplice, seemed to be around 9 or 10 years old, had shoulder length blonde hair, and wore jeans and a stripy top.  </p><p>“We know that Kenny’s ex-wife has a son, who she believes the entire inheritance should have gone to,” she added, including that information on yet another mind map, “And that she has hired lawyers and Private Investigators to try to dig up dirt on my mom, all for the sake of more money,” she finished off with a growl, unbelieving that someone could be so petty and cruel just for some extra money.</p><p>She sat back and looked at her work. Not bad for a day’s work. “Oh! I should add the threatening phone calls to this mystery guy’s mind map, since he was sniffing around the house,” she exclaimed. There, now that was everything. She packed it all away into a folder that she’d now be using for her investigation, and sighed, feeling better now that all her knowledge was stored somewhere.</p><p>“I’ll find out more details from my mom when she’s feeling a bit less vulnerable and exposed,” she continued, “And maybe I could come round to your house at some point this week to ask your mom a few questions?” she questioned, hopefully. “If you’re not comfortable with that, I can try to come over with Maxine at some point, if you don’t feel ready to have me as your… person.” </p><p>He held her hand and tilted her chin up so she was looking at him. “I will do anything I can to help you. Anything you need. If you want me to talk to my mom about it, I can get all these details for you. I’m here for you, every step of the way.”</p><p>-</p><p>That night, before she headed to her own bed, Ginny went to go check on her mom. She was sitting up in bed, reading one of her favourite romance novels, and Ginny knew she was trying everything to distract herself from what was going on. She crawled into bed, next to her mom, and rested her head on her chest. </p><p>“So…” she started, making sure her mom’s full attention was on her. “I like Marcus Baker…” she couldn’t help her giggle after she admitted that fairly obvious statement. </p><p>Her mom looked down at her and smiled, “Oh, really? I had no idea! I’m shocked I tell you, shocked!”</p><p>Ginny hid her face in her mom’s shirt, mumbling, “He’s different than I thought he was!” and unable to hide the smile that was evident on her face.</p><p>Georgia put her book down on the side table and turned to face her daughter. “From what I saw tonight, he’s a really good kid. Austin really seemed to like him.” </p><p>“I know, right? I mean, that’s so crazy because Austin never likes ANYONE! But mom, he’s so kind and sweet and he really cares about me. When I was upset last night, thinking about how no one cared about me, he texted me to check in on me! Like, I had been being a TOTAL bitch to him because of… well, you know. He had no reason to be so kind to me and constantly put himself in the firing line like that. But it just suddenly occurred to me that he’s always asking about how I’m feeling or what’s going on with me. And the way he looks at me…” she trailed off with a sigh. “I feel like he’d do anything for me, anything at all. He cries when I cry. Like, I think he just cares about me a lot and I like that feeling.”</p><p>Georgia was looking at her with both eyebrows raised in surprise. That was a lot of words for her to process all at once.</p><p>“We talked on the phone basically all night. We talked about everything, like what happened that night, and how it made me feel, and what I had been thinking. He told me everything that had been going on with him. Did you know he had a best friend who died of cancer last year, mom? Did Ellen ever mention that? Everyone’s acting like he’s some crazy rebel without a cause, but he’s literally been screaming for help all year and no one’s paying him any mind… They’re just too wrapped up in their own lives to realise that he’s like insanely smart and could easily be the next Elon Musk if they could all just stop fucking with him for one day!!” </p><p>“Honey, I had no idea. Really, that must have been awful for him,” her mom responded, shocked that Ellen would treat her son that way when he was clearly going through something awful.</p><p>“Yeah, and despite that, he still got 103 on the last chem test. He gets no support at home, they don’t believe in him and they treat him like some kind of monster, but he’s still really trying.” She let out a sigh, tired of being so angry all the time.</p><p>“Well, he’s been really great with Austin today. I was thinking of hiring him as a babysitter to come hang out with Austin, get him out of his shell a bit. What do you think?” Georgia responded after a while.</p><p>Ginny leaned in and kissed her mom on the cheek for being so thoughtful. “Mom, we’re dead broke. We can’t afford to hire anymore babysitters,” she retorted with a smile. “Besides, I reckon I could convince him to do it for free!” </p><p>“Oh reeeeally? Well, who am I to pass up a free babysitter?” teased Georgia in return. </p><p>Even though their situation was as dire as ever, and nothing had changed to make it easier; Georgia felt freer than she had in years. Her daughter was growing into a formidable woman, and Georgia was proud to have her on her side. She couldn’t believe it had taken her this long to trust Ginny enough to let her know the dangers they were facing. Her reaction proved that she could handle the truth. </p><p>Well, most of it. </p><p>Some of it. </p><p>In small doses.</p>
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<a name="section0026"><h2>26. Chapter 26</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Ginny woke up the next morning feeling more nervous than she was expecting. A lot had happened over the weekend. She knew she had resolved to stop caring about the toxic people in her life, but she would still have to see them everyday in classes and in the hallways. She didn’t want to be on their shit-list… she just didn’t want to be their friend anymore. </p><p>She had muted the MANG chat on her phone, but every time she checked, there had been at least a hundred new messages while they talked amongst themselves about God knows what. She wanted to leave the chat, but she thought they’d think that was dramatic. She shouldn’t be worrying about what they thought, but she couldn’t help it!</p><p>She needed help.</p><p>GM: I don’t wanna go to school :(</p><p>He responded immediately.</p><p>MB: Yes you do, otherwise how will you see me?</p><p>GM: We could both skip school and stay in bed all day?</p><p>MB: Tempting. But no. You can do it.</p><p>GM: UGH. How do you break up with someone without them hating you?</p><p>She needed advice about how to stop being friends with MANG. Their relationship was so codependent and possessive, it was almost like a romantic relationship, except it had none of the fun benefits.</p><p>MB: Don’t ask me, I think Padma’s friends are going to kill me today.</p><p>GM: But you’re her brother! You should know how I can separate from the group in a healthy and positive way…</p><p>MB: If I knew that, don’t you think I would have tried it myself?</p><p>Ok, that was a fair point. She could probably just try ghosting them to be honest. Maxine was with Sophie now, so it would take her a really long time to figure out that one member of her audience was missing when she was so preoccupied. She basically avoided Abbie and Nora every chance she got, so there wouldn’t be a change there, really. </p><p>GM: You are of no help :( </p><p>Getting ready for school and leaving the house felt like she was marching towards her doom. She knew she was being melodramatic, but these girls were starting to scare her. They were so hateful most of the time, when they managed to think of anyone besides themselves for a moment.</p><p>And don’t even get her started on the Hunter situation. She had absolutely nothing to say to him. He needed to fix the mess he had created and she wanted nothing to do with it. </p><p>As she walked into school, ready to begin her mission to avoid MAN, Ginny noticed that something was… off. People she had never seen before were staring at her as she walked past. One girl stopped her to tell her that she liked her shirt. It was a plain black shirt. There was nothing to like about it. Ginny just stared her down until she walked away in shame. She’d had no idea what that was about, until one really enthusiastic guy walked straight up into her personal space and started talking to her about Hunter’s song. She didn’t even try to hide the rage in her expression as she stared him down to the ground. </p><p>Why, on Earth, would people ever find it appropriate to congratulate a girl for having a song written about them? Even if it had been true, and that Hunter had really written this romantic pop song and dedicated it to his girlfriend, surely it would be Hunter who deserved the fame and credit? All she would have done was date a musician. It was twice as frustrating for her knowing that it wasn’t even true. These people were getting excited about a fantasy, and not even a very good one. </p><p>Hunter really should have dedicated it to Abbie instead. </p><p>Speaking of whom, Ginny noticed that all of MAN had congregated at their spot and called her over to talk some more about the song that Hunter had apparently written for her. She smiled politely while they gushed and then escaped to her locker to get her books for the day. They continued their excitable conversation about it even as she left without saying a word. </p><p>Huh.</p><p>Perhaps ghosting them was going to be even easier than she thought. They were so self-obsessed, all she had to do was continue to be polite and they would have no idea that there was no friendship between them. Polite and non-committal. That was basically her natural state of being. Cheered by the thought that she could stop being friends with them without anyone noticing, Ginny bounded towards her locker.</p><p>She stopped in her tracks, not expecting the sight before her. Standing in front of her locker, was Hunter looking like an absolute train wreck. He had the deepest circles under his eyes, like he hadn’t slept since she last saw him. His hair was a mess and his clothes were all crumpled. He usually looked like he woke up at 5AM to get perfectly ready for school, but today he looked like he had just rolled out of bed, grabbed the first thing he saw, and headed to school. He wasn’t even looking at her as she approached. His gaze was unfocused as he stared into space, yet the expression on his face was of pure heartbreak.</p><p>Her heart softened towards him a bit. Sure, he had made a stupid decision to dedicate his song to her as some big publicity stunt, but he didn’t deserve to be tortured over it. He looked like he had put himself through hell for the entire weekend.</p><p>His attention snapped to her when she opened her locker.</p><p>“Ginny, please. I’m so so sorry. I’ve fucked everything up and I know I deserve everything that happens now, but please. I can’t lose you too. I just can’t…” He curled into himself, hiding his face so no one would see him crying. Ginny looked around, panicked. He didn’t need any embarrassment on top of what he had already been putting himself through this weekend.</p><p>She closed her locker and took his hands away from his face, forcing him to look into her eyes. She smiled reassuringly at him and rested her hands on either side of his face as she spoke.</p><p>“Hey, shh, it’s okay. You’re not losing me at all. Look at me, Hunter. Do I look like I’m going anywhere? I’m right here for you, you need to be kinder to yourself.”</p><p>He started smiling through his tears, although she could see that he was still crying. She didn’t want him facing the rest of the hallway so that everyone would see his breakdown, so she leaned against her locker and pulled him into a hug. He wrapped his arms around her and let out a huge shaky breath, finally starting to calm down again. </p><p>“I’m such an idiot, Ginny. Press will never talk to me again. He hates me so much, all I ever do is hurt him and make his life worse. He thinks I’m ashamed to be with him!” He was whispering all his worries into her shoulder while she stroked his back, but he was starting to breathe heavily again and it seemed like he was going to start bawling at any moment.</p><p>She grabbed his hand and dragged him to the nearest classroom for some privacy. He sat on a desk, staring into space. He definitely wasn’t mentally prepared to go to class today, Ginny needed to help him sort his feelings out or send him home to get some rest.</p><p>“Are you ashamed to be with him?” She had to ask, because that was really the crux of the issue. She couldn’t really help him if he didn’t want anyone to know about his relationship with Preston and he wanted to keep hiding it. Even an asshole like Preston didn’t deserve to be treated that way.</p><p>He looked at her, offended, “No! His family… Ginny, you have no idea. They’re the worst kind of people. They hurt him and belittle him all the time. I think they would actually kill him if they found out. His dad…” he shuddered, unable to finish the sentence. “I don’t give a shit what my family thinks about my relationship with him. They love Preston and think of him as another son. I just… I couldn’t imagine what I’d do if he got hurt because of me, because of this..”</p><p>Awww. Hunter was such a dumbass! He was absolutely head over heels in love with this boy and he was trying to put his safety first. Ginny could dig that. There was definitely a hell of a lot they could do to fix this.</p><p>“Sweetie,” she started, trying to convey how cute he was being, “Don’t you think Preston deserves to be a part of that decision making process? From what I heard on Saturday, you’ve been making all these excuses, which make it sound like you’re ashamed to be with him, instead of just being honest. He’s getting hurt right now, as it is. Why not tell him the truth and let him decide what to do about his family?”</p><p>It was great advice. Ginny was a god damned miracle, if she did say so herself. Hunter looked hopeful for a moment and then hung his head in shame. Damn, what now?</p><p>“He won’t talk to me or listen to me. He’s blocked my number and won’t come to the door when I go to his house. I don’t know where he’s been all weekend. He stormed off on Saturday and I haven’t seen him since! I don’t think he’ll even come to school this week.”</p><p>Well. That was a bit of an issue. If he was nowhere to be found, it would be kind of hard to have a conversation with him. She got her phone out of her bag and handed it to Hunter.</p><p>“Take my phone, he won’t recognise my number. Call him, talk to him, convince him to come to school. I’ve got an idea of how you can win him back!”</p><p>The bell went and she needed to rush to her first lesson of the day. “Keep it for first period. Talk to him, tell him everything you just told me and LISTEN to what he wants. You can give it back to me after first period!” She kissed him on the head and rushed out of the room, barely making it to her first lesson on time.</p><p>Oh, joy. It was English with Gitten. She kept her head down all lesson and decided she’d just do her best to get by in that class until he wasn’t her teacher anymore, because he would never reward her efforts. She could tell by the way he regarded her 100% score in the quiz that he would mark her work more harshly than anyone else’s, and she decided she would keep a log of all her works, including the comments written on them, for her complaint to the board. She also decided to keep a log of every unprofessional comment he made in her class as further evidence. </p><p>By the end of that first lesson, she already had half a page of unprofessional comments written in her notebook, and was contemplating getting a voice recorder, or better yet, a spy cam to provide more concrete evidence about the way he treats people of colour in his classroom. She spoke to Bracia about her idea in between lessons, and she laughed with glee, promising to pass the message on to the rest of their group. Her word alone wouldn’t mean much, but they couldn’t ignore video recordings from different children all over the school. </p><p>Hunter returned her phone looking much brighter than he had all morning. He gave her a giant hug, spun her around and dramatically kissed her forehead. Thank. GOD. He was almost back to his usual self. He still seemed a bit shaken at the idea of losing Preston, and honestly, Ginny was absolutely HERE FOR IT. They were her new favourite couple and she needed to make sure they were happy together. Like she was. With Marcus. She blushed and smiled just thinking about it. Focus, Ginny. Help friends first, fantasise about Marcus after. </p><p>She told Hunter her idea for how to win back Preston and he absolutely loved it. He ran off to find Padma and Brody so they could prepare for it, and Ginny walked into her next lesson, pleased that she had been such a huge help. She was absolutely buzzing with excitement and didn’t even mind the looks she was getting from everyone in the corridors. It was like they were all celebrating her brilliance with her.</p><p>-</p><p>At lunch time, she flopped onto an empty table, exhausted. She had no more energy and no more fucks to give. People were still looking at her in the corridors, even if they didn’t dare to approach her for congratulations anymore. After her buzz wore off from helping Hunter earlier, she started to worry about all the looks she was still receiving. Feeling like she was constantly being watched was an awful feeling and it kept her feeling tense all day. </p><p>Even worse, she hadn’t seen Marcus at all, all day. She hadn’t expected them to be joined at the hip or anything, but a hug would have been nice. Or even a smile. She literally didn’t even know if was in school. She picked at her salad, eating as much as she could despite the fact that she had no appetite at all. MAN joined her at the table at some point and started talking about Halloween costumes and a party, and she just smiled politely and agreed with whatever had just been said when they bothered to ask her opinion. </p><p>She escaped to the library for the last 20 minutes of lunch break and miraculously found an empty table far, far away from the entrance. She trusted that Hunter would have been able to pull off her plan without her being there to witness it. All she wanted to do was put her head on the desk and just sleep the rest of the day away. It was tempting, but it would only cause her to fall behind in her classes. Instead, she decided to see if she could find out where Marcus had been all morning.</p><p>GM: I miss you. In the library. What are you doing?</p><p>No response.</p><p>She could see that he had read her message and that he had started typing, but then he just stopped and didn’t respond. </p><p>That was weird.</p><p>She decided to put that out of her mind and start doing some reading ahead for her Chemistry lesson, since she was already caught up on her assignments. Maybe she could impress him with her superior knowledge of the elements of the periodic table. She giggled at the thought, loving the fact that he was such a nerd despite his cool facade. </p><p>As she wandered the impressively stocked shelves in the Science section, she was so distracted by her thoughts that she almost didn’t notice the couple talking in one of the rows a few shelves away from her.</p><p>It wasn’t until she recognised Marcus’ voice that she started to get that feeling of dread in her stomach. All she heard were the words, “I made a mistake,” before she heard the unmistakable sounds of kissing. </p><p>Refusing to be one of those girls who just jumps to the most ridiculous conclusions because they have no self-esteem and don’t trust their partner at all, Ginny walked closer to investigate. It was likely that there were tonnes of boys in their school with deep, sexy, husky voices that sounded just like Marcus. She just hadn’t spoken to them, so she had assumed it was him, but it was probably someone else.</p><p>As she got close enough to see the couple, that theory was put to rest. There, at the end of a section marked ‘Geology Rocks’ which she assumed no one had ever used in their lives, was her… person. He was standing there, leaning against the wall, in full view of the rest of the library, while he held Padma close to him. They weren’t kissing, but their stance was intimate, caring. </p><p>Ginny felt her heart break into a million tiny pieces. She refused to believe what she was seeing though. There had to be some kind of explanation that made sense. Maybe this was an illusion? Or maybe Padma was blackmailing him, holding his family hostage so he’d stay with her?</p><p>She kept watching, hoping that she would be able to explain away this misunderstanding somehow if she just stayed there for long enough. He had literally spent all day with her yesterday. She shared some really intimate details about her family. He got her little brother to open up. How was this happening right now? Was she having a waking nightmare? Hallucinating?</p><p>She ducked behind the nearest shelf when it looked like they were pulling away.</p><p>Padma leaned away from Marcus and whispered in a quiet, unsure voice. “What you said on Saturday… about this not being anything. Just stress relief. That hurt me, Marcus”</p><p>Ginny was going to be sick in the middle of the library. The more she watched, the more she was coming to the realisation that this was actually happening right in front of her eyes. What the fuck, Marcus?</p><p>She didn’t want to hear his response, but she couldn’t move away from the scene if she tried. It was like watching a car crash. It literally didn’t make any sense to her and it seemed to be happening in slow motion as she was rooted to the spot. </p><p>He sighed and ruffled his hair, “Look, can we not talk about that right now? I just need--”</p><p>“No, Marcus! We have to talk about it! I’ve been feeling like shit, always coming to you whenever you want me. The way you spoke to me on Saturday, we should have been done. I want to know why you’ve come crawling back to me now.”</p><p>If Ginny’s heart wasn’t about to be vomited out of her throat, she might have celebrated the fact that Padma was finally sticking up for herself. She really didn’t want to hear any more of this conversation. She needed to escape. She had talked to her MOM about this boy. Her mom liked him!! What the actual fuck was happening right now?</p><p>“I just, I can’t handle anything more than what we have, Padma. I can’t. There’s too much and I don’t want to feel anything.” He leaned in to kiss her again, probably thinking that was some sort of romantic line. News flash: it absolutely wasn’t.</p><p>Padma put her hand on his chest. “What do you mean, you don’t want to feel anything? Do you not feel anything when we’re together?” Her voice was starting to break towards the end, and Ginny’s heart couldn’t take anymore. </p><p>She didn’t know what the fuck was happening in Marcus’ mind. She needed to bolt. She felt like she was going to faint, and she had to hold onto the nearest bookshelf to balance herself. She needed to run. Fuck last period, she was going home. </p><p>No. Fuck bolting. She needed to find out what was happening here. Hastily wiping the tears from her face, she walked down the shelf with Marcus and Padma, pretending to look for a book.</p><p>“Sorry,” she deadpanned, “I just need one of these rock books. Don’t mind me at all,” she looked at Marcus for less than a second, only wanting to convey the depths of hurt she was feeling and nothing more. He needed to know that she had heard everything and they were going to talk about it. </p><p>She wanted to say something sassy to Padma about her deserving more, but she didn’t want the girl to see her messed up, puffy-eyed face. So she just grabbed a book at random and walked away. She didn’t know why a part of her was expecting Marcus to chase after her and explain everything immediately.</p><p>It just hurt all the more when she realised he had seen her pain, her hurt, and stayed with Padma anyway. </p><p>GM: Outside. Bike shed. You need to explain to me what the fuck I just saw.</p><p>She didn’t have to wait long. Everyone else was going to be in lessons soon, so she would be able to scream as loud as she wanted without worrying about being overheard. This abandoned bike shed was far enough away from everything else in the school.</p><p>“No more misunderstandings. That’s what we said on Saturday isn’t it?” her voice was already cracking and the tears were flowing freely. “What could possibly have happened in the past 24 hours to justify the scene I just walked in on??” She was trying to be calm, and find out his explanation before exploding on him, but her voice was a blubbery mess.</p><p>He didn’t even look sorry. His eyes were hard and he looked as angry at her as she looked at him.</p><p>“I just realised that we’re not really suited to each other, Ginny. This would never work. Let’s stop kidding ourselves.” He crossed his arms over his chest, trying to act uncaring, but he practically growled the words.</p><p>“Bull. Shit. Tell me what made you go and seek out Padma and throw everything away.” She started off so strong and angry, but then her insecurity started to take over. A horrible thought occurred to her and she asked in a timid, quiet voice, “Was it…” she cleared her throat, desperately needing to get the next words out of her mouth, “is it because of all my family stuff?”</p><p>If that was the reason, maybe it was best they broke things off here. She doubted her mom’s life was going to get any less complicated, and if this was how Marcus treated her when things were difficult, she deserved way better. </p><p>Looking up at him, she could see his expression briefly soften as he took a step towards her, involuntarily wanting to comfort her. He stopped himself and stepped back almost immediately, his face hardening once more. What the fuck?</p><p>“It has nothing to do with that and you know it.” He gritted out.</p><p>???</p><p>“Marcus, what?! Just fucking say it! WHY did you go back to Padma!? Why don’t you care about me? What made you want to hurt me this badly?” She leaned heavily against the pole behind her and slid down so she was on the floor.</p><p>“I saw you. This morning. With Hunter” he finally said, as though that explained anything. She looked up at him, incredulous, waiting for him to explain how that was related to anything at all.</p><p>“You said there was nothing between you. You said that song meant nothing, but the way you were hanging off him this morning… you held him so tenderly. I thought you would have been mad at him, but you just can’t resist him, can you? I couldn’t handle the… My heart felt.. I understand why you’d want to be with him, instead of me. He’s got everything together and I’m just a mess. I want you to have that life, where you get to have friends and everyone knows how amazing you are,” he let out a sigh and looked up.</p><p>“If you were with me, the looks you’d get… It wouldn’t be like being with Hunter. People would constantly be trying to warn you about what a waste of space I am. And it’s true. You should be with someone like Hunter. You’d be great together. Everyone was saying it all day. I don’t want to stop you from being able to be happy like that.”</p><p>Fury. Pure, white hot fury was the only thing Ginny could process right now. Was this idiot for real? After everything they’d been through, he took the decision into his own hands like that, choosing to betray her, mess with Padma’s feelings, completely ruin what they had, instead of TALKING TO HER LIKE A NORMAL HUMAN BEING?! </p><p>Ginny didn’t believe a word of what he was saying. She stood up, brushed off her clothes, and looked at the time. It had only been 10 minutes. She could make it to Chemistry and still catch most of the lesson. She could find an excuse for being late and the teacher wasn’t too bad anyway. This boy was not going to mess up her life any more. She was done. Really, fully, completely done.</p><p>She wanted to leave without saying a single word to him, but when she looked back at his face, she couldn’t resist one final parting speech.</p><p>“Look, I know that all my family stuff was a lot yesterday. I don’t usually… I shouldn’t have come to you with that. I get it. It’s a lot, and Austin was a lot. He’s just never…” No, she wasn’t going to justify her brother’s existence. Austin was pure perfection in her mind and if this dickhead couldn’t appreciate him, then he could fuck all the way off. “It’s fine. If my family drama was too much for you, you could have just told me. We could have stayed friends. You didn’t need to make up some excuse about Hunter. You didn’t need to go straight to Padma…” she trailed off, having another realisation.</p><p>“Look, if she’s the person that makes you feel safe and at peace, you didn’t need to hide that from me. I would have understood if you just… told me. That you didn’t want…” She wasn’t going to cry anymore. Really, she had way bigger problems to deal with than Marcus Baker being a fuckboy. It was definitely a good thing that she didn’t have to talk to him or think about him or be with him anymore. She could focus more on her mom’s stalker investigation. </p><p>She turned around and walked away, practically running to the Chemistry lab. She was absolutely present and focused on the lesson. She made insanely diligent notes, making sure to transcribe every word from the teacher. It was probably the best lesson she had had to date. </p><p>After school, when Hunter was excitedly regaling her with the story of how he performed ‘I Can Barely Breathe’ for Preston in the hallways, making sure that everyone knew they were together, she was extremely focused on every single word coming out of his mouth. She was determined not to let her mind wander to any unnecessary topics. When he hugged her and thanked her for saving his relationship, she thought really hard about the image of him and Preston together. She did not think about anything else or any other relationships that could not be fixed. At all. </p><p>When she got home, she spent every moment with Austin listening to his excited ideas for his Halloween costume and trick-or-treating in this area. She diligently made note of all his ideas and helped him to draw up plans for his costumes. Yet another great project for her to focus all of her attention on, so she wouldn’t have to think about anything at all. Her family was <i> hers </i> . They were hers and she  <i> loved </i>  them. She wouldn’t blame them because some stupid boy couldn’t handle their drama. If he couldn’t handle it, it was better for her to know now. But she wasn’t thinking about that at all. She was drawing up plans for a Captain America shield. </p><p>She’d have to go to the Bakers’ house at some point to interview Mrs. Baker about her mom’s stalker but that wouldn’t be an issue. She’d figure it out, or she’d find a way to catch Mrs. Baker when she wasn’t in her house. Or when neither of her children were at home. Her description of the stalker would be the first step to unlocking the entire mystery. Ginny didn’t need to worry about anything else except Austin’s costume and her mom’s stalker. There wasn’t anything else she needed to think about.</p><p>-</p><p>Catching Mrs. Baker outside of her house had been difficult on Tuesday so on Wednesday, Ginny caved and asked Maxine if they could hang out and plan their costumes for the Halloween party. Apparently they were all going dressed as the baddest bitches from Marvel. Ginny already knew she was going as Storm. The X-men comic books Storm, not either of the lame movie versions of her. Still, it was a good excuse to have a casual chat with Mrs. Baker.</p><p>Maxine was in an insanely good mood because she was getting closer to Sophie. She was able to carry the conversation for most of the day without needing any input from Ginny at all. All she had to do was smile and agree. </p><p>She had given up on being focused and present for every conversation. Instead, she leaned hard into solving her mom’s mystery stalker situation. She had compiled a list of Personal Investigators operating in the area they used to live in, focusing on the ones who charged a tonne of money and claimed to be willing to do anything. She knew there would be some shady people who didn’t advertise online for plausible deniability, but it was somewhere to start. There were 48 people on her list, and hopefully, she’d be able to narrow it down after hearing Mrs. Baker’s description.</p><p>Ginny could barely control herself when she heard Mrs. Baker enter the house. She made an excuse to go down to the kitchen and managed to catch her as she was packing away the groceries. Ginny offered to help her, to butter her up a bit. She was so thrown off by the offer, she didn’t even manage to decline, like most people would do if a guest offered to do house work. Clearly, her kids were diiiiiiicks. </p><p>Initially, Ginny had been planning to be mostly honest with Mrs. Baker to get the information she needed, but after Marcus’ reaction, she decided she needed to be just a little more manipulative. She had already okayed the idea with her mom, so all she needed to do was put it in motion.</p><p>“So… Mrs. Baker, there’s been something really worrying me at home, and I think you can help,” she started, trying to make herself look vulnerable and small. “My mom mentioned that you saw a man who was asking about our house a few weeks back, do you remember?”</p><p>“Oh, yes, I remember that, but it’s not something you need to worry about! I just found it a bit odd, that’s all.” </p><p>Good, she remembered, and it stuck out in her mind as odd. That would be helpful for Ginny’s investigation. </p><p>Ginny continued, in a quiet, shy voice, “Well, actually. That’s the thing. I think it might be something connected to my late step dad,” she trailed off at the end, trying to get her voice to crack, even just a little bit. She couldn’t. She sniffled pathetically instead.</p><p>“See, he was so loving, he treated my mom like she was the centre of his universe, and he spoiled me and Austin terribly. We’ve been trying our best to learn how to live with his absence but… His ex-wife has been making it really hard,” she held her head in her hands and tried to squeeze out a tear.</p><p>“We’ve been getting threatening phonecalls at home, saying that me and Austin would be in trouble if my mom kept the money he left to us in his will,” she sobbed, graciously accepting the tissue and hug from Mrs. Baker, who looked absolutely mortified to know that the people she had become so close to were going through so much. </p><p>“She.. She… She’s become obsessed with my mom because Kenny tried to leave enough money in his will for us to be able to live comfortably, and” she dropped her voice down to a whisper and looked around, really playing up the idea that she was too scared to even talk about it, “We think she’s hired someone to follow us. Those phone calls started almost as soon as you mentioned that you had seen the guy asking about our house. I’m so scared, Mrs. Baker.” she leaned into her shoulder again, ‘sobbing’ quietly as her kindly neighbour tried her best to soothe her.</p><p>“Oh, sweetie, you need to go to the police! This sounds like harassment!” she advised.</p><p>“We have, they said they’re looking into it but they haven’t got much to go on,” she lied, there was no way in hell they were going to the cops. “I need to know what this guy looks like. Could you describe anything at all that you remember from that day?” </p><p>By the end of her interview, Ginny felt that she had everything she needed to recognise her mom’s stalker. He was handsome, tanned, possibly Asian or Latino. He had high cheekbones and small eyes, black hair parted to the side. Some stubble/moustache, but that would be easy for him to change. She had a rough drawing from Mrs. Baker whose artistic skills were actually pretty impressive. He had tattoos on his neck and arms. Ginny was pretty confident that she would be able to spot this guy in a crowd.</p><p>She thanked Mrs. Baker profusely for all her help and begged her not to tell anyone in case the stalker found out and reported it back to Kenny’s ex-wife. Feeling incredibly accomplished, Ginny rushed back home to cross-reference her new knowledge of the stalker’s identity with her list of PIs operating in the Houston area. Incredibly, even with that specific level of description, there were still 5 potential investigators who could have been possibilities. She printed off large pictures of their faces and information from their website and added it to her wall. </p><p>When she showed her progress to her mom, Georgia was very impressed. She studied the photographs well, as well as the description and drawing from Mrs. Baker. Ginny divulged every bit of information she had found, and advised Georgia to warn people that there was a man stalking her and making threatening phone calls to their home. Georgia wasn’t too pleased with the idea of letting everyone know her personal business, but Ginny suggested she tell them something close to the truth without actually revealing anything about what they were going through.</p><p>The idea had merit and Georgia agreed to think about it. All in all, Ginny considered her mission a resounding success so far.</p><p>-</p><p>School that week had been fine. Really, it was nothing to write home about. Ginny went to classes, focused intensely, did extra reading at lunchtime and avoided public areas like the plague. Undesirable No. 1 had been waiting at Ginny’s locker on Tuesday morning, so she stopped using her locker altogether. Her bag was way heavier, all the time, because she was carrying around all the books she needed for the entire day, but it actually ended up saving her a lot of time. And it was a great workout to walk around with such heavy weights. </p><p>She had to vary the routes she took to her classes and make sure that she got to class just as the bell rang to signal the beginning of the lesson, because certain unwelcome entities had taken to waiting along her more well-traversed routes. That was fine though, because she was getting to know the environment around her. She was really getting to know all the different ways to move around school, and all the fantastic hiding spots for avoiding people who really should have realised by now that they were dead to her. </p><p>Despite the time she spent exploring alternative routes around the school, she was way ahead in most of her classes now, and had blitzed through all of her assignments. And the extra credit work. It was amazing how much she could achieve when she didn’t have to waste time thinking about friends or other things. MAN were still being friendly towards her and always expected her to sit with them; she found their chatter to be more bearable now that she wasn’t listening intently. </p><p>She was feeling pretty numb to everything around her, to be honest, and she wasn’t experiencing many emotions - good or bad. Ginny counted that as a win, though. It was like there was an invisible, yet impenetrable, barrier between her and the rest of the world. She was able to smile and blend in now, it wasn’t difficult for her to do that. She just didn’t care. About anything. Which was great, because she used all the energy she would have put into caring and focused it on things that really mattered. Which was great.</p><p>Ginny was smiling so much more these days, and her friends were really starting to appreciate her constantly pleasant presence. There was only one moment that almost managed to force her to experience some kind of emotion. Fear. Panic. Heartbreak. </p><p>She had been sitting with MAN and Samantha at their sofa in the hallway, not really focusing on anything other than smiling and agreeing and imitating social cues. She had it down to a near perfect science by now, and was able to daydream about pleasant things while sitting surrounded by people.</p><p> Unexpectedly, Undesirable No. 1 approached the group. In the middle of the crowded hallway. With everyone around.</p><p>It was not the time for Ginny to be forced to acknowledge things. She absolutely refused, but there had been no way for her to escape with her heavy as shit bag weighing her down. She didn’t care if she had to make a scene in order to get away from him, but she didn’t know how she’d be able to do it without him catching up to her. Even if she left her bag and ran, he had his stupid long legs and he’d be able to catch her.</p><p>She had never expected him to approach her from the safe cocoon of his sister and her hated friends. It was such a huge risk, approaching her when she was with them, and she had assumed that he wouldn’t dare to try it. He hadn’t even spoken yet, but she could feel his stare, boring into her, like a creepy laser. There was no way in hell she was making eye-contact with him. Ever. She hadn’t even looked in his direction since Monday and it had been great. Fantastic. She hadn’t had to think about anything, and she needed to cling to that.</p><p>Panic was beginning to rise in her, and honestly, she was just about ready to fake a heart attack to get out of this situation. Everyone was just sitting there in silence, looking at the person who had just approached the group for no reason other than to stare at her, and she was refusing to acknowledge it. Even Abbie was remaining suspiciously quiet, likely having no idea how to react to what she was seeing. </p><p>Ginny’s only solace came from the fact that he would never want to have this conversation with other people around to witness it. As far as she was concerned, she wasn’t going anywhere alone ever again. She was staying with this group, preferably with Abbie as he seemed to dislike her the most, forever. </p><p>The arrival of Sophie Sanchez threatened to disrupt Ginny’s entire plan. Maxine had started excitedly warning everyone that there were seniors incoming, and got up to approach them. </p><p>In the commotion, He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named took the opportunity to finally attempt to address Ginny, so Ginny had to jump up and join Maxine in walking up to the seniors. </p><p>They had somehow ended up convincing them to attend Brody’s party on Saturday, but the most important part of that interaction was the part where You-Know-Who decided to fuck all the way off. That had been way too close, and Ginny was starting to worry about how bad it would be if she ever had to acknowledge the things that she hadn’t been thinking about. </p><p>She didn’t have to worry about that for the rest of the day though, so it was fine. In fact, she had redoubled her efforts at remaining unapproachable all week, and she made it safely to the weekend without having any kind of emotional break. It was probably a record for her time at Wellsbury.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Okay, now... before you shoot the messenger, just remember that Marcus is a dumb-as-shit teenage boy who has been through a lot of trauma in his life and so he is allowed to make terrible, stupid decisions! He will explain himself eventually!</p><p>*hides in the corner* And remember that you love me!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0027"><h2>27. Chapter 27</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Shhhhh, here's a second chapter to make up for all your heartbreak.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Of course, her luck couldn’t last forever. Saturday was as hectic and stressful as she could have expected. MANG had been signed up to do face painting at the fall fest, then she was going trick or treating with Austin and her mom for an hour, before joining the rest of her friends at Brody’s house for the party. </p>
<p>She would have to find time in between all that to shower and get ready for the party because her costume was hella revealing and she didn’t want to freeze to death while walking around with her family. Unless she showered and got ready, then just put on warm clothes over her costume for trick or treating. She’d decide closer to the time.</p>
<p>It all turned to shit when she was manning the face-painting booth with the rest of MANG. She had no idea how he found out where she would be and when, but she assumed it had something to do with his sister’s inability to stop talking about herself. </p>
<p>Ginny didn’t know how long he had been watching and waiting for the perfect opportunity to slip into the seat across from her, but as soon as he did, she had an awful feeling that there would be no escaping this time. He looked determined to fuck up her day, regardless of who was around to witness it. </p>
<p>She crossed her arms protectively around her mid-section and started looking through the face-painting folder. She concentrated fully on each image she could see, as well as the instructions to go along with them. Tracing the brush strokes on each instruction, tracking how she would need to move her fingers, her hands, her customer’s face. Anything to ground her to what was real and touchable and not based in thought. She was not getting dragged into those thoughts. She would get through today and schedule some time tomorrow to acknowledge the feelings she had been dodging all week. </p>
<p>Ignoring him wasn’t working.</p>
<p>He placed his hand on hers as she was tracing the images and she flinched as though she had been burned. He deserved that, he supposed. He deserved so much worse than that. He had fucked up the best thing in his life over some stupid insecurity. He didn’t deserve to even be breathing the same air that she was. </p>
<p>He knew she wanted nothing to do with him. He could see it in the way her gaze passed over him as though he didn’t exist and it hurt him every time, but he knew it was more than he deserved. He didn’t even know what he was doing. He just needed to be near her. He thought he could be free from her but it was impossible. She was everything. </p>
<p>Everything. </p>
<p>Seeing her so closed off was killing him. </p>
<p>“Ginny, please.” he begged. He didn’t care who heard him. He didn’t care what they said. Nothing at all mattered except the girl in front of him and he had been so fucking stupid. He couldn’t believe that someone like her would choose to be with someone like him. </p>
<p>His fucking insecurity had been screaming at him the entire time that it would all be taken away, she was too good to be true. And he had thrown it away immediately. She was so far out of his league, he couldn’t even imagine a world where she wanted to be with him. </p>
<p>She just kept tracing those stupid shapes in the face painting folder, completely unaware of what was happening around her. She would have looked so peaceful, if not for the tension around her eyes. That was the only outward sign he could find to prove that she was aware that he was near her. </p>
<p>She looked up at him and smiled, a bland smile that reached nowhere near her eyes. “I’ve been doing lots of lions today, so I think I’ll just keep going with that if you don’t mind? I’m not that artistic. If you want something else, Nora did a really great tiger earlier!” </p>
<p>Her voice sounded so chipper and upbeat, and her expression was full of false eagerness. She was talking to him as though they had never met before. Like he was just a stranger who happened to sit in front of her. </p>
<p>He nodded and played along, hoping that this would let him talk to her at least for a little while. He hadn’t realised how still he would have to sit for her to paint his face. He could barely open his mouth. Nevertheless, he felt calmer just being in her presence, even though he knew she wanted nothing to do with him.</p>
<p>Ginny was deeply focused on the brush strokes, moving her hands and fingers however they needed to be moved in order to recreate the lions she had been painting all morning. This was just like all the other lions she had painted. All she needed to do was get to the end of this paint job, and then there would be another. And she’d paint another lion, focusing on the brush strokes, and she wouldn’t think about anything else.</p>
<p>Painting a lion’s eyebrows was a more intricate process than most people would assume. It required intense concentration on the shape and the thickness of the hairs. It didn’t need to be perfect this time, but it was good to practise. She didn’t expect her concentration to be broken by her customer’s voice.</p>
<p>She shook her head and continued, signaling that now wasn’t a good time for him to talk. She was focusing. When she was finished, she held the mirror to the customer so he could see her work. It was probably the best lion she had drawn so far. She would have been pretty pleased with it if she were feeling emotions. </p>
<p>“I’m done with you now,” she chirped with a smile, looking straight through him. “There’s no reason for you to be here anymore!” </p>
<p>He sighed, defeated. “I just want you to know that you don’t have to hide from me at school anymore. I know you want nothing to do with me, and you deserve to be able to walk around without having to worry that you’ll run into me. I’m the one who did the wrong thing, made the wrong choices. I’ll make sure you don’t ever have to see me if you don’t want to.” He spoke quietly, with conviction, and then he disappeared into the crowd. Forever. Never to be seen again. </p>
<p>She wished. </p>
<p>Ginny managed to get through two more customers with a smile on her face before she broke down completely. She excused herself to go to the bathroom with a big smile, and she just walked and walked and walked until there were no people around her. </p>
<p>She ended up standing next to a beautiful lake when all the thoughts and feelings she had been ignoring all week finally caught up to her. She screamed into the air, crying and mourning something that she thought could have been beautiful. </p>
<p>-</p>
<p>After the revelation that Cynthia was running for Mayor, an already terrible day turned into pure chaos. Their mom was staying with the mayor to strategise moving forward, leaving Ginny to take Austin home to get ready for trick-or-treating. Ginny could have gone straight to bed and slept forever, but she didn’t want to disappoint her brother. He had been so excited to go trick-or-treating around here, and she wanted him to have everything he could want. If he wanted to trick-or-treat all night, she was going to be there every step of the way.</p>
<p>They got ready together, listening to a mix of spooky horror sounds and cheesy pop. It made no sense, and sounded awful, but they were having fun. They had just started listening to the Nightmare Before Christmas soundtrack when the first trick-or-treaters arrived at their house. They were pretty much done with their looks, so they decided to go down together to give out sweets.</p>
<p>Ginny shouldn’t have been surprised when she opened the door to her own personal nightmare. Or when she heard Austin scream, “Marcus!!” and launch himself at said nightmare.</p>
<p>And yet, here she was, dread pooling in her stomach at the thought of having to interact with this person again. </p>
<p>“Ginny, I--” he started, but he was cut off by Austin’s excited announcement.</p>
<p>“Ginny!! Marcus is here!!” he was screaming as though she wasn’t standing right next to him. </p>
<p>The only saving grace for this moment was the fact that Marcus looked even more horrified and uncomfortable than she felt. She smiled and stepped aside so he could enter.</p>
<p>“Marcus! What are you doing here? Are you going to join us trick-or-treating??” Austin, bless him, couldn’t contain his excitement, and Ginny had to bite her lip to stop herself from smiling at her brother. </p>
<p>“Yeah! Your mom called me to say I could come over and hang out with you all night while she’s at work!” Ginny rolled her eyes. Fantastic. ‘Introduce him to the family, make them like him’ she mimicked in her head. Great fucking idea. </p>
<p>“Oh, alright then. Austin? I guess that means you’re trick-or-treating with him so I’ll see you after my party?” She suggested, disappointed that she wouldn’t be able to trick-or-treat with her brother but absolutely refusing to entertain the idea of spending more time with that person. </p>
<p>“No!! Ginny, you promised! We even practised what we would say at each house! I can’t do it without you, you have to come,” he begged, looking scared at the thought of going out without his family.</p>
<p>“Okay, how about we compromise. I’ll take you trick-or-treating then you can knock on his door when we’re done and he can hang out with you afterwards.” That sounded like a decent plan.</p>
<p>“No! I want Marcus to come too! Please Ginny! He’s already here, it’ll be so much fun!” He started jumping up and down with excitement and, for the life of her, Ginny could not think of a reasonable excuse to get out of this.</p>
<p>And that’s how she ended up running around their neighbourhood with her brother dressed as Storm and Captain America, collecting more sweets than they’d ever be able to eat. Marcus had done a pretty good job of staying out of her way, as he had promised to do earlier. She barely remembered that he had been trailing behind them, unless Austin saw something that specifically required the attention of another boy. </p>
<p>All in all, it wasn’t as bad as she had thought it would be. </p>
<p>Now that she had acknowledged the loss of what they might have had, she was able to come to terms with and accept it more easily. There was no point holding onto anger. They had been together for barely a day, after all. It shouldn’t have been so difficult for her to get over it. People broke up all the time. Not that they had actually ever been together. Spending time near him, but not with him, was giving her some much needed clarity. </p>
<p>Last weekend had been… intense. There had been a lot going on, and they had just clung to each other to get through it. They hadn’t spoken about exclusivity or anything. She had just been lost in her feelings, she guessed. </p>
<p>Even if he had gone straight back to Padma, there was no expectation between them that they’d be together in the future. It had been nice spending that time with him, but there really hadn’t been any reason for her to think that they would have a future or a relationship. </p>
<p>She didn’t need to avoid him and he didn’t need to avoid her. They just didn’t mean anything to each other. As long as they agreed not to talk to or acknowledge each other, there shouldn’t be any reason that seeing his face in the hallways should be unbearable. </p>
<p>When it seemed that Austin was finally tiring and ready to go to bed, Marcus picked him up and carried him the rest of the way home. Ginny used that opportunity to let him know that there would be no hard feelings between them moving forward.</p>
<p>“Hey. Listen, you don’t need to avoid me at school either. I think I just misunderstood things a bit last weekend, but I’m happy to put it all behind me. Like, really. I’ve thought about it and you really didn’t do anything wrong,” she sighed. “You didn’t owe me anything, I have no idea why I thought it was such a big deal!” she let out a chuckle that started to turn into real laughter. </p>
<p>It was so ridiculous, now that she thought about it in retrospect. What had she been thinking?! That they’d be in some committed relationship after a few kisses? </p>
<p>“So, I think we should just pretend none of it ever happened. I don’t have to mean anything to you and you don’t have to mean anything to me. We can just be two people who barely ever have to come into contact, but who also don’t need to avoid each other.” Ginny felt more at peace now than she had all week.</p>
<p>She was finally starting to understand how she wanted to move forward. Everything she had been feeling, the intensity, the betrayal - she’d chalk it up to teenage hormones. At this point in her life, she didn’t need to be in a relationship; she clearly wasn’t ready for it. Lost in her thoughts, she had forgotten that she was walking with Marcus, until he spoke.</p>
<p>“Are you sure?” he sounded hesitant, and honestly, Ginny didn’t blame him. She had been bat shit crazy this week. She couldn’t believe she had blown up at him for spending time with his ex-girlfriend when they had literally spent one day together. She felt like a stage-5 clinger, and that wasn’t a cute feeling at all.</p>
<p>“Yeah, honestly. It didn’t mean anything. Please don’t worry about it,” and she really meant it this time. They got to her house and she opened the door to let him in. </p>
<p>She helped him put Austin to bed then tried to decide if she was really going to travel all the way to Brody’s house just to hang out with a bunch of people she really didn’t want to hang out with. She messaged MANG to let them know she couldn’t make it because she had to babysit Austin and decided to call it a night. </p>
<p>“Thanks for all your help with Austin tonight,” she said as she led him to the door.</p>
<p>“Oh, no, your mom said I have to stay until she gets home,” he argued, confused.</p>
<p>“I think she expected me to go to Brody’s party tonight but I’m really just not feeling it. I’ll stay here with my brother,” she explained, ready to get out of this ridiculous costume. </p>
<p>He looked torn. He couldn’t decide whether he should do what she wanted and leave or if it was worth it to stay and fight for her. For them. He couldn’t give up without trying absolutely everything in his power.</p>
<p>“I.. I don’t want to go,” he whispered, terrified that he had overstepped but desperately hoping he’d get one more chance. </p>
<p>Ginny abruptly looked at him and narrowed her eyes. It was too late for this shit. “Well, you--”</p>
<p>“Please, Ginny. Just. Hear me out,” he begged, stepping forward into her personal space. </p>
<p>She immediately stepped back, putting as much distance between them as physically possible. “Marcus! Stop. There’s nothing you need to explain or justify. I understand what’s happened, I really do. And I don’t blame  you at all. There’s nothing more for us to say,” she didn’t know how many ways she could tell him that there wasn’t anything he needed to make amends for. </p>
<p>His face crumbled, and she kind of understood why, but ultimately, it was really hard for her to care about him anymore. That part of her heart had hardened and faded away. Not in a dramatic way. Just in an “It’s not there anymore, don’t bother looking” kind of way. </p>
<p>“Please, don’t say that. Don’t diminish it. I’m so sorry, Ginny. It wasn’t nothing to me,” his voice cracked and she was completely underwhelmed by his little speech, and his tears, “It was everything.” He finished in a whisper, moving closer to her, “I am in love with you, Ginny Miller.” </p>
<p>Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuughhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. </p>
<p>Seriously? </p>
<p>Did those words really have to leave his mouth? </p>
<p>“Marcus--” she sighed, but he cut her off.</p>
<p>“No. You don’t get to tell me how I’m feeling. I know I’m in love with you, Ginny. I’ve known it for a while. It scared the shit out of me when I realised how much I’d be willing to do just to make you smile. How far I’d go to make you happy. And I fucked up, I know that. I ran away, and hurt you worse than I could ever have imagined.” Tears were streaming down his face and Ginny couldn’t believe he still had any energy left to care about this stupid little thing they’d had.  </p>
<p>She tried to muster some kind of empathy. It was a struggle. </p>
<p>“Okay. Let’s say you love me,” she rolled her eyes at the, quite frankly, ridiculous idea, “And you’re really convinced that I’m the person for you.” </p>
<p>She paused to look at him, making sure he was listening, “I need you to understand, now, that I don’t love you. I won’t ever love you. And… I’m not saying that to be unkind. I don’t want you to hold onto this, thinking there is ever going to be something between us. There isn’t. I’ll probably be gone in a month, especially with this stalker situation, so you were right to cut things off. It was way too intense.” </p>
<p>She gave him a pitying look and put her hand on his shoulder.  </p>
<p>“You don’t need to feel guilty about what happened, Marcus. We are fine, I’ve unblocked your number and everything. See?” she held up her phone and showed him his contact details, “You can talk to me whenever you want to. But you have to understand that there will never be anything between us. Can you accept that?” She tried to sound as patient and reasonable as possible. </p>
<p>“Please, don’t do this, Ginny,” he pleaded, unapologetically bawling his eyes out. She led him to sit down on the couch and got him a drink of water to help him to calm down.</p>
<p>She held his hand and leaned her head on his shoulder, feeling his breathing slow. She was so tired. Of all the feelings and emotions. Of all the worrying and caring. She had nothing more to give. This little failed experiment, seeing if she could handle having friends and romantic interests, she wasn’t interested in it anymore. She just wanted to be by herself again. She had never felt this… raw, bruised, exposed, when she had been alone. It was too much.</p>
<p>“I’m sorry we couldn’t make it work,” she said, eventually.</p>
<p>He held onto her hand and brought it up to his mouth so he could kiss it, probably for the last time. “Me too.” </p>
<p>“One day, you’ll find someone you’re not afraid to love and who’s not afraid to love you back,” she sighed, really hoping he’d find his happiness one day.</p>
<p>He didn’t respond. He couldn’t. He knew he had already found the person he loved, he couldn’t imagine ever not being in love with her, but he also knew that he had scared her away from ever loving him now. He didn’t know how he could live with that.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0028"><h2>28. Chapter 28</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>How about a third chapter in one day! Is this bribery working? This is why I couldn't publish any more during the week. I only had that first chapter written and I wasn't ready to have that horror unleashed upon you with nothing more to smooth it over :')</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>About an hour after Marcus left, Ginny went downstairs to get a bedtime snack. The past week had been an absolute horror show and she was ready to be done with it, but first she needed some ice cream. When she grabbed the tub of ice cream and turned to head back upstairs, she noticed a light in the living room that she had definitely turned off. The rest of the house was pitch black. Austin was sleeping and she only needed the light in her room.</p><p>Someone was in her house.</p><p>Someone who didn’t want anyone to know that they were there.</p><p>Was it the stalker?</p><p>Were they going to do something to Austin? Or Ginny? The panic she was feeling alerted her to every sound in the house. There was definitely someone in the living room. They weren’t moving around much, but they shifted position every now and then. It sounded like they were sitting down, just waiting, silently.</p><p>How long had they been in the house with her? Had they done anything? Taken anything? Were she and Austin in danger? So many questions, shooting through her mind in an instant. Shit, she shouldn’t have sent Marcus home. Could she make it upstairs, wake Austin, and get them out of the house safely before the intruders noticed? </p><p>“Come on out, Virginia. I heard you stompin’ around out there!” </p><p>The voice was female and Southern. It could have been that woman from work, the one who had tipped her. The danger of the situation was only just starting to dawn on her. She had seemed so nice when Ginny had been serving her table, but Ginny was all too aware that some of the worst monsters had the sweetest facades. Could she scream out for Austin to get to safety in time? It might wake him, but she wouldn’t be able to get the message across to him.</p><p>“Now, Virginia, it’s not polite to leave your guests waitin’, unattended in your house! Come on over here and let me get a look at you!” The voice was sounding impatient, and she didn’t know what kind of person she was dealing with. She suddenly had images of Bellatrix Lestrange carving up Hermione Granger while lecturing her about manners. That could very well be her, soon.</p><p>GM: Mom, intruder in house. Austin sleeping. Help.</p><p>She sent off the message as quickly as she could, not wanting to keep this person waiting any longer. Would her mom call the police? Would she come straight home? Could Ginny stall this woman for 20 minutes, giving her mom time to get home? Her mind was panicking, but her body was eerily calm.</p><p>She walked to the living room, to see the lady from the cafe sitting on the sofa with her laptop on the side next to her. The little boy from the cafe was lying with his head on her lap, fast asleep. Or so it seemed. She didn’t know if he was some kind of street child accomplice, or if he was another hostage that she had drugged into sleeping. If this woman was happy to bring children into a life of crime, there wasn’t much Ginny would put past her.</p><p>If this woman was happy to drug and hurt children to get what she wanted, Ginny and Austin were fucked.</p><p>Terrified, but determined, Ginny walked into the living room, glad that Austin had been so exhausted by the trick-or-treating. Hopefully, he would sleep through this and she would be able to find a way to get him to safety before anything terrible happened. She couldn’t bear to think about what she would do if anything happened to her baby brother.</p><p>The woman gestured for Ginny to sit on the couch opposite her and Ginny complied immediately. Maybe if she showed her that she would be obedient and compliant, the situation wouldn’t be so bad. She clasped her hands together on her lap and looked at the woman with an open but hesitant expression. ‘Please don’t hurt me or my family’ she tried to convey through her expression. </p><p>“So, your mom left you and Austin at home? All alone?” she tsked and closed the laptop. “That’s some questionable parenting right there,” she smiled as she stroked the head of the little boy on her lap.</p><p>Ginny was almost 100% sure that this woman was unhinged. </p><p>The boy slowly opened his eyes and took in his surroundings. He didn’t look scared or confused. Just tired. It had been close to midnight when Ginny went downstairs for her snack. Way past his bedtime. He stretched and blinked a few times before looking around.</p><p>Unbidden, a ridiculous question popped out of Ginny’s mouth, before she could even think about it.</p><p>“Can I get y’all a drink or something to eat?” As soon as the words left her mouth, Ginny’s eyes opened wide, shocked at the absolute foolishness of asking her home invaders if they needed refreshments.</p><p>The woman looked absolutely delighted by the turn of events, and a big, toothy smile appeared on her face. “Why, what a beautiful example of Southern Hospitality. Yes, I would love a drink, Virginia. Beer for me. Kid, what do you want?”</p><p>“I’m hungry, momma.” He yawned.</p><p>Well, this was happening. </p><p>Ginny couldn’t believe they would let her go to the kitchen unsupervised, out of sight. She figured it would be a test and they’d sneak in to check if she would try anything when she was out of sight. She absolutely refused to be caught out like that. She had already warned her mom about the home invasion and she didn’t need to take any more chances.</p><p>“We have popcorn and nachos, if you want a snack?” She suggested, focusing on the little boy as he seemed to be the less threatening of the two. Honestly, who carried their kid with them to do a home invasion?</p><p>“Awww yeah, I love nachos! I want all the sauces! You got guac?” thinking about nachos seemed to really excite this kid, and it almost broke the tension in the air. Not quite though, because this was still a home invasion and Ginny still didn’t know what these people wanted. </p><p>“Yeah, I think I can find that in the kitchen.” Ginny hesitantly stood and headed for the kitchen, not turning her back on the intruders until she was all the way out of sight. She immediately set to work putting the popcorn in the microwave and getting a bowl for the nachos. She contemplated trying to stash a knife in her socks, but she didn’t want to risk it.</p><p>If they were criminals from the south, they definitely had guns. A knife wouldn’t do much good with one of those pointed at her. </p><p>The little boy’s face lit up when Ginny walked into the living room with her tray full of snacks. His loud celebrations didn’t manage to drown out the sound of something heavy thudding from upstairs.</p><p>Shit. Either there was someone else in the house, or Austin had somehow woken up. She didn’t want him anywhere near this mess. Ginny chanced a look at the woman, hoping she hadn’t heard the noise. Unfortunately, the woman was looking at her with a knowing and suspicious look.</p><p>Hoping that the snack tray had earned her some good will, Ginny decided that she had to push her luck. “My brother. Austin. He reads before he sleeps and the books always fall out of his bed at some point,” she explained, hoping that the woman wouldn’t want to go upstairs to investigate. </p><p>“Awww my boy loves to read before bed too, don’t ya, Caleb?” She asked, ruffling his hair.</p><p>His mouth was full of nachos when he replied, “Yeah, I do! I’m readin Harry Potter and the Order o the Phee-nix!”</p><p>Ah, the one with Bellatrix Lestrange. How appropriate. Ginny tried to smile but it probably came out looking like a grimace.</p><p>“Austin, he… he gets nightmares. Can I go check on him to make sure he’s okay? It usually helps if I read to him to put him back to sleep,” she tried to ask as innocently as possible without sounding too obvious. </p><p>She desperately hoped she could silently wake Austin and help him to climb out her window without the intruders noticing. If she knew he was safe, she would feel much better about the situation. Even if she couldn’t get to safety.</p><p>The woman sat back, relaxed and unafraid of anything Ginny might be able to do. She knew who the dominant character in this situation would be, and it wasn’t the teenage girl standing there, shaking like a leaf.</p><p>“Well, sure! Why not? You go check on that sweet little darlin’. You let me know if you need any help getting him back to sleep, ya hear?” she agreed as she shoveled more nachos into her mouth.</p><p>Grateful for the chance to get away and hoping she could get Austin out her window before alerting the intruders, Ginny didn’t waste a moment running up the stairs to her brother’s room.</p><p>His door was slightly ajar and there was a small light coming from inside, like someone had a torch or a phone light in there. Was someone sneaking around in her brother’s room? What would they want in there?</p><p>Ginny crept, quietly, towards his room, regretting how loud she was when getting up the stairs. Whoever was in her brother’s room, they knew that someone was upstairs with them. She could only hope that Austin was asleep and unaware of what was happening. Tears silently slid down her face as she worried about how afraid he would be if he were awake. Lying there with some stranger stalking around his room. </p><p>She had to get in there. She didn’t have a weapon or anything. If only she had taken that knife from the kitchen. </p><p>Creeping silently forward, Ginny was still trying to come up with some sort of plan to confront whoever was in the room with Austin. She had been hoping that the light may have just been Austin’s night light, but she could definitely hear movement from inside the room. And whispering. Were there two intruders in there? What the hell was going on?</p><p>Steeling herself for the inevitable confrontation with an unknown intruder, Ginny pushed open the door to her brother’s room, ready to try to tackle the intruders and give Austin enough time to escape out the window. She may still have the element of surprise.</p><p>What she was not expecting, when she walked into the room, was to see Austin, looking terrified, standing by the window in his room, dressed in his coat and boots ready to climb down at any second. Now was she expecting to see… Marcus Baker? Whispering instructions and encouragement to her little brother? What the fuck?</p><p>“What the fuck are you doing here?” she whisper-yelled, regretting it immediately as Austin jumped and nearly lost his balance on the window.</p><p>“Ginny! Thank fuck. Your mom called me in hysterics asking me to see if I could spot the intruders from outside the house. I saw you down there with them but Austin… I climbed in through your window, got him ready. I was going to come back for you!” He was trying to whisper but he seemed so panicked.</p><p>Ginny couldn’t feel anything but pure relief. Her mom had seen her message. Austin was going to be safe. </p><p>“Thank you,” she whispered, ready to go back down, “Take him to your place, please!” she turned, ready to head back to the intruders and claim that Austin was still asleep. Her quick return would make it seem more plausible to them, and hopefully she’d be able to buy more time for her mom to get home. </p><p>She felt a hand grab her arm and turned back, “Ginny!” It was Marcus, “Please. Come with us. Don’t go back down there,” he begged in a quiet voice. He stepped closer to her and cradled her face in his hands.</p><p>She stepped back. Seriously? This wasn’t the best time to make your move, dickbag.</p><p>“Ginny, I can’t lose you. Please. Come with us,” he begged, a tear escaping his eye and falling down his face. He reached for her again, holding onto her hand this time, “I’ll protect you. We can all wait it out at my house. Please, Ginny.”</p><p>“Go, protect Austin!” she insisted, still whispering, trying to communicate as quickly and urgently as she could. “This is wasting time. I need to know he’s safe! I can handle myself.”</p><p>When it looked like Marcus was going to argue again, Ginny put her fingers on his lips to stop him and continued, “If I go, they’ll figure it out pretty soon. They’ll either escape into the night ready to try again another time, and believe me, they won’t be so kind the next time… Or, they’ll come and find us. They know a lot of intimate details about us. They’ve been watching us for a while. They might know that we would go straight to your house. I don’t know what these people are capable of, Marcus. We can’t put your family in danger. Please! Just, take him and go.”</p><p>She didn’t have time to debate this anymore. She practically ran back down the stairs, wiping the tears from her eyes and preparing to return to hostage negotiation.</p><p>The woman had finished her beer by the time Ginny got back with a whispered, “He’s still sleeping, thank you for letting me check on him!” so she headed back to the kitchen to get a refill for her uninvited house guest. </p><p>“So, what kinda movies you got lying round here?” the woman asked after Ginny handed her the beer.</p><p>Ginny had no idea what kind of dominant flex this was, but she obediently got up to show the woman their meagre DVD collection. “We mostly just watch Netflix on the TV,” she explained, apologetically.</p><p>The woman let out a whistle, gesturing to the TV. “Oho! Look here, Caleb! They got The Netflix on their TV! What d’ya wanna watch, kid? We need a movie to go with all these snacks!”  </p><p>Ginny sat in tense silence after she showed them which buttons to use on her TV remote to get Netflix working. She couldn’t tell if she was going to be tortured or adopted by this woman. There was a vaguely threatening air about her, but she hadn’t actually used or threatened any violence. The only unsettling thing she had done was to break into their home, their safe space, and make herself comfortable. </p><p>Just as she was starting to seriously regret her decision not to escape with Marcus and Austin, the front door burst open and her mom strode to the living room, gun ready to shoot. </p><p>Tears, of relief, of frustration, of powerlessness, poured from Ginny’s eyes, now that she could see her mom was there to protect her. She had been so terrified, waiting to see if she was going to be taken away or hurt. The relief of seeing Austin to safety had been short lived, as she’d had to return as a hostage to make sure he could keep being safe.</p><p>Seeing her mom bursting in like an avenging hero, Ginny had never been more grateful for the laws allowing her mom to carry a firearm. She hated guns, and she knew their use needed to be regulated. She knew that. The intruders wouldn’t have been able to intimidate her so thoroughly without her concern about whether or not they had a concealed weapon. But boy was she happy to see her mom.</p><p>“Maddie, what the hell are you doin’, scarin my daughter half to death?!” was not what she expected her mom’s first words to be. Did she know this woman?</p><p>“Well, Sis, it’s hardly my fault they were left here in this big nice house all alone and vulnerable, is it?” she grinned and she stood up to hug her sister.</p><p>Georgia put her gun away and sighed. “I could have shot you, you dumbass. Why didn’t you tell Ginny who you were? She thought you were a home invader!” At that thought, reminding her of the horrible night her daughter had had, Georgia rushed over to Ginny and wrapped her in her arms.</p><p>Ginny seemed to be in shock, too overwhelmed to process what was happening around her. She had been through so much in the past week, her body just seemed to shut down completely. She wasn’t moving, wasn’t even blinking, but tears were streaming down her face. Her last thought before blacking out was, “I might need to go to a hospital.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0029"><h2>29. Chapter 29</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>So, apparently, it turned out that the crazy southern lady who had broken into her house had been her Aunt Maddie. A woman she had never known existed, because her mom had told her that her entire family was dead. She had never even mentioned a dead sister. Just said she was an only child and that her parents were dead.</p>
<p>Well, having met the crazy bitch, Ginny could understand why her mom would pretend she didn’t have a sister. Who, the fuck, broke into someone’s house like that without ever mentioning that they were related? Ginny knew she had done it on purpose. There was no way that was intended to be a comfortable meeting. Georgia had called the school to let them know Ginny wouldn’t be coming in for a week due to a family emergency, and she had done the same for Austin.</p>
<p>Ginny knew that she definitely needed it. She had slept for all of Sunday and most of Monday. Her body had had so much adrenaline coursing through it, for such a long time, that once she was safe again, it just shut down. It needed to recover. By Tuesday evening, she had been feeling a bit more normal and able to start making a dent in all the school work she had been missing. </p>
<p>Maxine and Hunter had been dropping off their class notes as well as the homework for each lesson for her every day. For some reason, copies of Marcus’ diligent and well-explained Chemistry notes were also included, but Ginny didn’t really focus on that detail too much. She knew she needed to talk to her mom about Marcus. It wasn’t okay for her to be involving him so much in their family issues. He had a lot going on and Ginny didn’t think he should be a person they relied on. </p>
<p>Austin and Caleb had been getting on like a house on fire, all week. Aunt Maddie had said that she took a couple weeks off work to come and visit them, so she had one more week left before they had to go back home. It seemed that she and Georgia were going to spend all that time getting drunk, harassing poor Joe, and reminiscing about the good old days. </p>
<p>On Wednesday, when Ginny woke up feeling a bit more human, her mom had told her that Maddie was really only in town because a Private Investigator had offered to pay her thousands of dollars to fly over here and spy on her sister. According to Maddie, she only came so that she could warn her sister about a PI who sounded a bit too invested in this case, and tell her to guard herself more closely.</p>
<p>To be fair, Maddie had broken into their house, while they were at home, pretty easily. If she had been a deranged psycho who wanted to rape and/or kill them, it would have been pretty easy for her to do so. When Ginny asked why it had taken Maddie so long to approach them, Maddie joined the conversation and explained,</p>
<p>“I had to see what I was letting myself in for! I hadn’t seen nor heard from my sister in over 10 years. For all I knew, she really could have been the psycho that the PI was making her out to be.” she laughed to herself, thinking this nightmare of a situation that had been plaguing their family for weeks was some kind of joke.</p>
<p>Then, she got a serious look in her eyes. “I’m telling you, Sis, he was way too concerned with getting information about you. I think it’s goin’ far beyond his job description. He knew more about our childhood than I did!” She genuinely seemed a bit shaken when recalling her conversations with the PI.</p>
<p>Luckily, Maddie had something more solid than her thoughts and impressions about the PI. She was able to provide a huge amount of information about him, and was easily able to identify him as Gabriel Cordova, one of the 5 PIs that Ginny still had on her wall. Not that Ginny was in a rush to let Maddie know about her wall. Her information was useful, but she still didn’t trust the woman.</p>
<p>Maddie had recorded all her conversations with Cordova, starting from their second meeting after he ‘convinced’ her to work for him. She gave them to Ginny and Georgia to listen to, and Ginny could immediately understand why Maddie would want to travel all this way to warn her sister about him.</p>
<p>He sounded both threatening and unhinged. His gravely, deep voice painted a horrifically detailed picture of their mom’s life, including information about Ginny’s grandparents who she had never met. If even a fraction of this stuff was true, Ginny could understand why her mom told her they were dead. Based on the uncomfortable looks on both her mom and her aunty’s faces, Ginny guessed that all this and more would have been true of their childhood. </p>
<p>She couldn’t imagine having a mom so dependent on drugs that she would knowingly let her husband… Ginny shuddered, not even wanting to finish that thought. It made her think of Kenny, of the fear and isolation she felt because of him. She had been afraid to talk to her mom about it, because she had felt so ashamed. She didn’t think her mom would have understood. </p>
<p>Now, she could see that her mom would have understood only too much. Ginny was incredibly lucky that Kenny had died when he did. She was sure that what had started as less-than-innocent touches could easily have evolved into what her mom went through - as a child. Ginny was 15 and she didn’t know how she was going to get over what had happened with Kenny. Her heart broke and the flood barriers holding back her tears followed soon after, as she thought about how scared her mom would have been, growing up with such horror and knowing that none of the adults in her life cared enough to protect her. Knowing that her mom knew about…</p>
<p>They had to stop listening after only ten minutes of the first recording. The fact that this piece of shit was willing to bring up their past trauma to try to force a woman to turn on her sister. For. An. Inheritance… Ginny was losing all faith in humanity. Seriously, who the fuck were these people? How much money did they need? She couldn’t understand how they would justify digging so deep into a person’s life, forcing them to relive childhood traumas, for any reason at all. But for money? Fuck that.</p>
<p>All three women were sitting in silence, sobbing almost uncontrollably because of what they had just heard. Ginny didn’t know how Maddie had made it through that conversation without crying the first time round. She had probably been so thrown off guard, and shocked by the audacity of the prick. Hearing it while in a safe place… it felt like a violation. And that was for Ginny, who had never experienced it. She was probably going to have nightmares for a long time.  </p>
<p>She grabbed her mom in a fierce hug, wishing she could have protected the innocent child who deserved so much better. Astounded by the fact that this incredible woman had been through so much, yet had become such a successful and loving person. Ginny had read all about serial killers, and had known that many of the most sadistic ones had had lives similar to her mom’s. If Georgia had holed up in a bunker, planning mass murder attacks on innocents, it would have made total sense. Yet, here she was, absolutely killing it as a mom, killing it in her job at the mayor’s office, and sticking it to the assholes who ruined her childhood. </p>
<p>Despite her initial cold reaction to her Aunt Maddie’s psychotic introduction into her life, Ginny couldn’t resist pulling her into the group hug. She didn’t imagine that the people who treated her mom so cruelly would have spared her little sister of any of the abuse. She was so god damned lucky to be born to a woman who would do anything to protect her children, even though she had never had any adults protecting her when she was a child. </p>
<p>The others had calmed their crying, quickly getting over the initial shock of reliving such awful memories. Ginny, however, was struggling to get over the depths of cruelty that some people could unleash - especially on children. She was lying in between her mom and her aunt, who were cradling her and hushing her, trying to make her feel safe. That only made her feel even worse, because she wished she could go back and save the poor little girls who had grown into these strong-as-fuck women. There was no way in hell Ginny would have been able to survive what they went through as kids. No. Fucking. Way.</p>
<p>The pure awe that she felt for these women. The depths of their compassion and personal growth. There weren’t any words she could use to describe how much she admired them for escaping that cycle of abuse and making something of themselves. She wished she could have told them how much she looked up to them both, but she was still bawling like a baby. </p>
<p>It felt almost cathartic, to be so surrounded by the love and strength of these two women while she purged every negative feeling she had been experiencing over the last few weeks. The heartbreak, the betrayal, the cold dread, the isolation. It was all coming out of her now, and these women were giving her their strength, showing her that she would be able to get over anything that happened to her in life, if she could take inspiration from these crazy bitches. </p>
<p>Eventually, her body ran out of tears. Ginny was exhausted, awed, empty. All of her stupid teenage drama seemed so pathetic when she was faced with the very real horrors that her mom and her aunt had had to face when they were younger than Austin. None of her shit was so terrible that she wouldn’t be able to get over it. </p>
<p>She needed to stop dramatising every little issue, and really appreciate how lucky she was to have this life. To be surrounded by such wonderful people who made her feel safe and cherished. She felt like she was really, finally starting to understand how hard her mom’s life must have been, and it made her think about all the things that she was taking for granted.</p>
<p>She needed to forgive Marcus. She had known from the beginning that he struggled to deal with stress and negative emotions in a healthy way. Padma had been his outlet for such a long time following the death of his best friend. Any time he had been stressed or overwhelmed by dark thoughts, she was the person he went to. That was how he coped. It was more than a habit, it was his way of surviving, his primary instinct. Ginny could understand that better, now.</p>
<p>She understood the pain and betrayal he must have felt when he saw her with Hunter that morning. She had felt it too, when she saw him with Padma. That feeling that the world had suddenly started spinning the wrong way, and she was going to fall off - float off into space, untethered. Alone. Unable to confide in anyone the depth of the hurt you were experiencing, because you yourself didn’t even understand it. </p>
<p>Ginny could understand how a dumb, teenage boy would struggle to process that level of emotion, let alone react to it in a healthy, logical way, like talking to the source of your pain. It would have been a lot fucking easier if he had just spoken to her about it straight away, but Ginny understood that he was dumb, and he was a boy, and he needed to be taught how to communicate in a positive, healthy way. Society had programmed boys to hide their emotions and only express them through aggression and sexuality, so she could understand why he acted in such a fucking disgraceful way. She was really ready to let it go and forgive him. For reals.</p>
<p>She didn’t know if she’d ever be ready to trust him again. Definitely not with her heart, but maybe not even with her friendship. She knew he was a good person, and he always did his best to make her life better, but Marcus Baker needed to sort his life out. He had about a year’s worth of school work to catch up on, he needed to figure out a healthy coping mechanism for all the stress he was dealing with, and he needed to learn how to communicate his feelings. </p>
<p>Ginny wanted him to succeed and she wanted what was best for him, but she was no one’s door mat. If he asked her for help, she wouldn’t hesitate to give him all the support she could, but she wasn’t going to put her self and her heart on the line, waiting for him to hurt her again. She didn’t believe he was ready to be the person she knew he could be, and she wasn’t going to let herself get trapped by something toxic, just because she liked him as a person. He had trauma he needed to deal with, and she couldn’t even contemplate being with him until he did. </p>
<p>Having finally taken the time to resolve her feelings about Marcus, Ginny felt truly at peace with her mind and her heart. She hadn’t realised how much the uncertainty around her emotions and feelings had impacted her. She felt physically better, despite how tired she was from all the crying. The tension that she had been carrying around all week seemed to melt off her, now that she had decided to really forgive him and move on. He wasn’t some villain who had intentionally set out to hurt her. He was a person, who made decisions to protect himself from being hurt further. Who made bad choices sometimes, and struggled to cope with the chaos and horror in the world. Even though they would never be lovers, maybe… eventually, one day, they could be friends.</p>
<p>-</p>
<p>Ginny didn’t realise she had drifted off to sleep until she woke up a few hours later, alone, on her mom’s bed. She sure had been sleeping a lot these past few days, but she felt like she was finally on the right path. She wasn’t going to hold on to the hatred and betrayal she had felt before. She was going to stop obsessing over the PI investigating her mom’s life. This was way bigger than what she could handle, and her mom and aunt Maddie seemed like they would definitely be on top of it. </p>
<p>When she finally showed her conspiracy wall to Aunt Maddie, the woman let out an impressed whistle and laughed out loud. She pulled Ginny into a hug and kissed her on the forehead. It made Ginny feel proud of all the work she had accomplished, but she was ready to hand over the reigns of the investigation. They agreed to set up the conspiracy wall in her mom’s room instead. </p>
<p>After that, Ginny needed a change of scenery. She hadn’t left the house since she had gone trick-or-treating with Austin on Saturday - 3 days ago. She hadn’t had a reason to shower or get dressed in that time, so she was going to get dressed up and go out tonight. The only person she could bear to spend time with these days was Hunter - and he was being so adorably in love with Preston, that it honestly made Ginny feel giddy. Seeing the way his dramatic little face lit up when he spoke about his boyfriend, and the wistful sighs he let out unintentionally, reminded her that romance wasn’t dead. She needed that cheery optimism after the day she had just had. </p>
<p>He picked her up after dinner and took her to a cute little bakery that sold the most delicious cupcakes known to man. He bought her a full dozen after she shared the absolute horror show of a weekend she had had, learning that she had a secret aunty and that her mom’s family had been such horrific bastards. She didn’t go into much detail, but he could probably feel the trauma leaking out of her pores. </p>
<p>Hunter did a terrific job cheering Ginny up with ridiculous stories about the things she had missed at school. Some of them had clearly been fabricated for her entertainment, but they were pretty easy to spot as they usually tended to involve some sort of magic or shape shifting. His stories that involved Preston were her favourites. They were completely contrary to the opinion Ginny had of him based on her personal observations. Apparently, he was really adorably protective of Hunter, and was a hopeless romantic with a beautiful singing voice. He had hidden that side of himself reeeeeal deep and Ginny had no intention of ever finding out if any of those stories were true.  </p>
<p>Despite the number of cupcakes she had eaten, and the amount of talking they both did, Ginny had only been out for an hour before she was ready to head back home. Her reintroduction to socialising was going to have to be completed in very small increments. She kept the rest of her cupcakes in a to-go box, intending to either share them with her family or eat them all sneakily in bed.</p>
<p>She still hadn’t decided whether to hide the cupcakes or share them by the time Hunter had dropped her home. The loving sister in her was telling her to share them, at least with Austin and Caleb. The glutton in her was trying to convince her to hide them, but tell them all about the bakery so she could eat all of her cupcakes and then go again to get more. She was still contemplating the ideas when she walked into the house, so she was absolutely unprepared for the sight she was met with.</p>
<p>Pillows all over the floor and three bodies working hard to balance on them to get from one place to the next.</p>
<p>“Ginny!!! Come and play with us!! We’re playing lava! You have to come over here, quick! You’re standing in the lava!” Even without seeing him for herself, Ginny could easily tell that Marcus Baker was in the house due to the volume and excitement in Austin’s voice. Marcus just always seemed to make Austin scream. Ginny could relate.</p>
<p>Why.</p>
<p>Why was he in her house. With her brother and new cousin.</p>
<p>She did not want him in any way involved in her family or their drama. He had way too much going on with his own life and she didn’t want him in her space. Yes, technically, theoretically, she had forgiven and understood his betrayal. But that forgiveness was soooo much easier to experience when he was nowhere near her. She wanted to forgive him from a distance. Preferably involving walls between them. Multiple walls.</p>
<p>Yeah, she was definitely going upstairs to hide her cupcakes.</p>
<p>“Awww, sorry sweetie, I have to go upstairs and… do some things. Away from here,” she responded as she practically sprinted up the stairs. Who needed subtlety, anyway? The boys would be fine with their babysitter, and as long as she didn’t look at him or think about the fact that he was in her house, she could just imagine that he was a random hire her mom had made. No big deal. She’d just watch a movie in her room. </p>
<p>Before the hobbits had even made it to The Prancing Pony, there was a knock at the door and Ginny’s movie was interrupted. No good could come from opening that door. She should have just pretended to sleep.</p>
<p>Instead, she moronically called out, “Yes?” inviting her ex-whatever into her space. Her body didn’t tense and her heart didn’t clench painfully when he came into sight. She was surprised and delighted by the lack of physiological response to his nearness. She hoped that she really was getting over the thing they had between them, and that she’d really stop caring about it altogether. The thought made her smile.</p>
<p>“Is everything okay?” she asked, hoping that there hadn’t been some kind of accident with the boys. </p>
<p>“Yeah, they’re watching The Avengers, so I thought I’d slip away while they were distracted,” he phrased it as a statement, but his expression was hesitant and worried, clearly asking if that was alright. </p>
<p>Was it alright?</p>
<p>She didn’t really have anything to talk about with him, and she would feel kind of weird just watching a movie while he stood awkwardly in her room. There was no fucking way he was getting anywhere near her bed. She really didn’t know if she wanted to spend time with him if she didn’t have to.</p>
<p>“Is there any particular reason you want to be here?” she asked, really trying to sound curious instead of frustrated. Either way, it was probably a pretty harsh response. She felt bad.</p>
<p>He stepped forward and steeled himself for more abuse, physically drawing himself up into a stronger stance. “I want to talk to you. About us.” His expression was mulish and determined, Ginny could tell he was ready to fight - for what? She had no idea. She was tired of fighting.</p>
<p>She smiled at him conspiratorially and pulled the cupcakes from her hiding spot. “Don’t let the boys know these are here.” She demanded of him, solemnly. In a brighter tone, she added, “Want one?” as she got out the one with pink icing and sprinkles for herself. He grabbed a green one, hesitantly, looking confused and disoriented. </p>
<p>Ginny took the pile of laundry off her chair and placed it on the foot of her bed so he would have somewhere to sit. Even though this was her fourth cupcake of the night, Ginny couldn’t hold back her moan as she took the first bite. It was soooooo fucking delicious. She wanted to live in that bakery and eat nothing but cupcakes for the rest of her life. Nothing could bother her, so long as she had a constant supply of these cupcakes. She owed Hunter big time for introducing her to these little delights. </p>
<p>When she had eaten most of her cupcake, she remembered that she wasn’t alone in the room. She glanced at Marcus and saw that he was taking small bites of his cupcake and pointedly looking around the room, refusing to look in her direction. </p>
<p>Whatever. She liked to eat and she wasn’t ashamed of it. Shoving the rest of her cupcake into her mouth and making sure to swallow it before speaking, so as not to offend anyone’s delicate sensibilities, Ginny asked, “So, you wanted to talk?”</p>
<p>“Yeah, um. Yes. I have a lot I want to say and… Please just. Listen?” His speech was disjointed and cautious. </p>
<p>“Okay,” she agreed, “Please, just don’t say--”</p>
<p>“I love you,” He blurted, unable to stop himself. Wow, strong start there, Marcus. Ginny rolled her eyes.</p>
<p>“I can’t take you seriously when you say that!” she complained, knowing it was completely unfair for her to try to dictate how he expressed his feelings. “We were together for literally one day, I just… even if you think you feel that way, could you just not say it?” </p>
<p>“Yeah, ok. Sorry. It’s important for.. ok. So, I have been feeling things, for you, for a while,” he started, clearly trying to avoid using the phrase she had just vetoed. “Subconsciously, I would always seek you out in any room I entered. I felt whole when I was near you. I was completely consumed by you; I wasn’t even fully aware of it. Talking to you, smiling with you, it became the only thing I looked forward to most days; I couldn’t stop myself.” He ran his hands through his hair and stood up, pacing.</p>
<p>“I thought it was completely one-sided. I saw how you lit up every room you entered, how everyone naturally gravitated towards you, and I thought… There was no way you’d ever… You just deserve so much better than me. I didn’t think you really even took notice of me. I wasn’t one of your people, I was just in the periphery. Desperately wanting to get closer to you but…” He clenched his fist and sighed, frustrated at being so shit at communicating his thoughts and feelings.</p>
<p>“Last week, when you told me how you felt, why you got so mad every time I was near you, that you had… feelings. For me. I didn’t think it could be possible. I felt like… like I was floating, like I was so full of love, I would burst. I could barely focus on anything but the incredible idea that you, the girl who had mesmerised me from the very first moment I saw you,” he trailed off, getting lost in his memory of seeing her for the first time through his window. The adorable shocked face she had when she noticed that she had been caught looking at him. Unbidden, a smile crept onto his face, refusing to leave.</p>
<p>“It was hard to believe that anything that good could happen to me. Being around you made me feel complete, like the piece of myself that had always been missing was finally within reach. It was everything. I wanted to be so much better, I wanted to get all my shit together, for you, for me. I finally felt like I could be worth something again, you know? It had been so long since I had any… hope. Yeah, that’s the word, isn’t it? Hope.”</p>
<p>“Being with you gave me hope. That life could be good. That I might be okay. That I could make you smile and make you happy and nothing else would matter. Everything would be worth it if I could be with you, be in your life.”  He sighed and sat at the foot of her bed, his head in his hands. </p>
<p>“I shouldn’t… I shouldn’t have jumped to conclusions when I saw you with Hunter. I know that. You’ve never given me any reason not to trust you. You’ve done nothing but care for me, be patient with me, listened to me when no one else cared. My love for you.. It’s selfish. I know it is. I can’t breathe without you. I’ve been living in agony without you this past week. I wish I had taken a picture of the peace and joy on your face when I stayed with you at work last week. If I had a pensieve, I would have spent the rest of my life reliving that day, feeling the full impact of your focus and attention when you looked at me, radiating pure joy.</p>
<p>“Seeing you looking so empty this week, so fearful of running into me, of acknowledging your feelings - Ginny, it killed me to know that I was the reason your bliss was extinguished. That I had the power to make you feel so giddy and contented, but I crushed it and caused your eyes to deaden and your heart to harden. By hurting you, I hurt myself - I can’t bear to see you aggrieved. It’s been tormenting me - I can’t… Sleeping is a torture, because all I see is the smile on your face when I walked into the room last week. I know that when I wake, all I’ll see is your fully justified resentment and fury, if you ever dare to look at me. Or worse, your indifference.</p>
<p>“But the voice, that inner monologue… it had been telling me constantly that you were too good for me. That you should be with someone perfect, like Hunter. Someone who had their shit together, who people enjoyed spending time with. Who could show you all the fun and enjoyment in life. It was constantly repeating in my mind - I’d only bring you down, you’d come to your senses soon and choose someone better than me.</p>
<p>“It just… it would have made so much sense, for you to realise how much Hunter could offer you! How much happier your life would be if you were with someone that cheerful and upbeat all the time. How I’m just a dark cloud ruining the atmosphere, and you’re the sunshine itself, brightening the world. Why wouldn’t I have assumed that you wanted to be with someone on your level instead of someone like me? I wanted you to be with someone better than me. It was so stupid and selfish. </p>
<p>“What you saw, with Padma…” </p>
<p>He got a panicked look in his eyes and grabbed more tightly to his hair. He looked like he could do some real damage with how tightly he was pulling it, so Ginny moved closer and held onto his hands. It was clear that he needed to get this all off his chest. It wasn’t about making Ginny understand or trying to make her forgive him. It was about finally being able to express his thoughts, out loud, with someone to listen unjudgementally. </p>
<p>Ginny had never witnessed Marcus saying so many words in one go. She been reading about different types of therapies and counselling. She had been hoping to be able to provide some amateur support for Austin to help him with his anxieties. This seemed like a serious case of Marcus needing a safe space to talk and air his feelings. All Ginny had to do was listen fully to what he was saying and provide emotional support while he expressed himself. Like letting a wave wash over you without getting pulled into it. She acknowledged his thoughts and feelings without trying to take them personally.</p>
<p>She couldn’t focus on the way his words were making her heart beat out of her chest, or the longing she felt in response. Knowing that he saw right into her soul, knew the very depths of her mind… it wasn’t something she could consider right now. She couldn’t go there with him, she knew that. His anguish threatened her resolve, the way he described how her pain became his. But she couldn’t. It was toxic and too intense and she needed to let him vent and then leave.</p>
<p>Hearing about his reasons for going to Padma, about their history and relationship… it was going to be difficult, but she could do it. He didn’t have anyone he could open up to like she could with her mom. He didn’t have anyone who would just be a sympathetic ear. She pitied him, and wanted to help. She didn’t feel that she owed him anything, and she was starting to realise that this wasn’t romantically motivated at all. She could see someone struggling and trying their best, so she was going to help.</p>
<p>She held onto his hands, tightly, trying to ground him in the reality of the moment. She looked him in the eyes as she said, “It’s okay. Please. I want to hear it,” to encourage him to share as much as he felt comfortable with sharing. </p>
<p>He looked at her like he had no idea who she was, like he couldn’t imagine that she was really real. Unbelieving and incredulous. She just smiled patiently, waiting for him to continue. This was for him, he needed a healthy way to express himself. Ginny was going to start finally being the change she wished to see in the world. Boys aren’t encouraged to share their thoughts and feelings? Fuck that, she was making sure every male in her life knew that it was important to express themselves. Starting with Marcus and Austin. </p>
<p>He sighed, breathing unsteadily and finally allowing himself to cry. Ginny held him in her arms, proud of him for letting out all his thoughts and emotions in this way. She knew how cathartic it could be to cry and talk and scream. She had done all three in the past week and had needed to be basically comatose for two days after. She hoped he would finally be able to rest after tonight. </p>
<p>“I know I haven’t been coping well. At all. I… I used Padma and drugs when things got to be too much. It started off as something I needed when the thoughts got too much, when I couldn’t imagine a life that would be worth living, when I wanted it all to end. It didn’t make me feel better, but it made me forget for a while. </p>
<p>“The weed on its own wasn’t enough, I needed to be reminded that I was alive, that there were people who cared about me. The physical touch, the kissing, it made it feel real - tangible. Here was a person who would spend time getting high and touching me. It… focused the pain. Gave it an outlet. I was never violent, but… it wasn’t exactly romantic.”</p>
<p>Ginny remembered how he had kissed her at Sophomore Sleepover - the hard bruising kiss that was nothing about loving and all about releasing the fear and anger he had been living with. She didn’t want to think about how strong Padma must have been, to keep going back to those kisses. Knowing that it wouldn’t feel great, but that he needed it. </p>
<p>Maybe Marcus didn’t love Padma; maybe he really saw her as a dependency, like his weed dependency - but Ginny was starting to realise that Padma must have been in love with the idiot. She must have seen him struggling and wanted to help him in any way that he would accept. Ginny’s heart broke for the girl.</p>
<p>“Seeing you with Hunter, thinking all those thoughts and feeling all those things… It’s like my body went on auto-pilot. I went straight to my dealer, and got enough weed to make me forget my own name. I spent the entire morning trying to convince myself not to smoke it, to find some other way to deal. Padma… she saw me with it, she knew what I was going through. I think she just wanted to help. We never really talked before and I didn’t know how to… what to say. I didn’t want to hurt her, I couldn’t tell her how I felt about you, how it was tormenting me. I just thought I needed… I thought I just needed to feel like there was someone who cared.</p>
<p>“At lunch time, when I got your message, I panicked. I had already been in the library with Padma and I just… it was like I couldn’t breathe. My chest, my heart, there was just pain and tightness -I knew I was having a panic attack. I knew I had fucked everything up. I didn’t want you to see - but I would have told you about it, I swear. I would have told you everything. </p>
<p>“Padma tried to calm me the only way she knew how, but it wasn’t working. It was too much. What you saw… I’m so so sorry. It was unforgivable. I don’t expect you to ever forgive me. I don’t deserve to be forgiven. I just want you to know why. I want you to understand that I love you, and I will love you, even though I shouldn’t be anywhere near you. </p>
<p>“I can’t believe you would listen to me after everything I’ve done, after how much I’ve hurt you. Your capacity for caring and kindness, even for people who haven’t earned it… it’s what makes you so irresistible to me. I’m sorry I can’t be strong enough to stay away from you; I’m sorry I can’t stop telling you I love you. I’m just so sorry, Ginny. Please, believe me.” </p>
<p>He was full on ugly crying by the end, begging for her forgiveness, for her trust. Ginny just held him tightly, lying him on the bed next to her and wrapping herself protectively around him, like her mom and Aunt Maddie had done for her when she had been bawling her eyes out. She stroked his hair and made soothing noises, encouraging him to purge all these feelings - the insecurity, the guilt, the hurt. He needed to let them all out physically, just as he had done verbally.</p>
<p>She had never felt prouder of anything she had accomplished in her life. She was helping him, healing him. The emotional stress he had been under, for who knows how long? His best friend was diagnosed with cancer - that’s not a quick and immediate death. That’s a slow march to his end, and Marcus had to be with him every step of the way, and then somehow try to cope after he was gone.</p>
<p>Ginny didn’t know if any amount of therapy could help him to deal with that, but she was so glad that she would be able to help. Crying was a good step. Talking was even better. That he was willing to do both around her, that he felt safe and secure enough to do both in her presence was a precious gift. She wasn’t going to throw it away just because he had hurt her. She wasn’t a heartless bitch. </p>
<p>Not wanting to disturb his cleansing purge of emotion, Ginny didn’t verbalise her forgiveness quite yet. She didn’t think he was ready to process it and she wanted to be able to really convince him that she meant it. Instead, she tried to show him, with her actions, that she would forgive him as long as he kept trying. That she would be here to support him if he needed and wanted it. He fell asleep in her arms and she tucked him into bed. </p>
<p>Expressing emotion was exhausting - Ginny could definitely attest to that. So, she let him sleep while she went down to check on the boys.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0030"><h2>30. Chapter 30</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>After playing therapist with Marcus, Ginny decided to spend the next two days in the library catching up with the week’s school work and assignments. Her mom and Aunt Maddie had returned after midnight on Wednesday, carried in by a confused and smitten-looking Joe, and Ginny didn’t even want to know what had happened to cause that look to appear on her boss’ face. Their hangover on Thursday morning was legendary, and Austin and Caleb took the opportunity to wreak absolute chaos while their moms tried to sleep it off. Ginny knew she wasn’t going to get any work done at home, so she wandered to the library down the road from her house.</p>
<p>The library was a small-looking little thing, smaller even than the school’s library. It had a decent book collection, though, and the head librarian, Gladys, was a sweet and patient lady who was happy to answer any questions Ginny had about the books and the town gossip. Apparently, librarians just knew everything about everything. The atmosphere at the library was incredibly peaceful. There wasn’t the stressed out buzz that was constantly present in the school’s library, and Ginny found that she was able to get way more work done here than she would have at school or at home. By the end of Thursday, she was ready to move into the library for good and forget about school.</p>
<p>That was, until Marcus showed up at the end of the day.</p>
<p>“Are you stalking me, neighbour?” he asked out of nowhere, as he disturbed HER quiet time at her new library. She looked at him, unimpressed.</p>
<p>“How did you even find me here, Marcus? Do you have a tracker on me or something?” She was only half-joking.</p>
<p>“Wowwwww, someone thinks the world revolves around them, don’t they?” He responded with a flirty grin, leaning closer into Ginny’s personal space. Uh oh. Ginny was glad to see that he was feeling better, but she didn’t want this kind of flirty banter with him. That was not what she was going for. At all.</p>
<p>He was looking at her again, like he just couldn’t take his eyes off her, and Ginny realised that she hadn’t given him any kind of response after the… pretty detailed declarations he made yesterday. He must have assumed that she was ready to jump back into things because she hadn’t immediately kicked him out. Did she need to clarify that her forgiveness didn’t come with an automatic reset of the past?</p>
<p>She leaned back, ready to ask if they could go somewhere to talk, but was interrupted by Gladys.</p>
<p>“Marcus Baker, you leave that poor girl alone! She’s been having a lovely time in the library and I don’t want you to scare her away with all your charms,” she exclaimed, swatting him on the arm. She then surprised Ginny by pulling Marcus into a hug and asking how he was doing. They had an animated conversation, bordering on flirty, and Ginny had to hold back a laugh at the fact that he could apparently charm the pants off of anyone, including their elderly librarian.</p>
<p>She finished up the work that she was doing and packed her bag, happy with what she had accomplished for the day. Marcus followed her out of the library and they went to sit on a bench outside.</p>
<p>“So, you didn’t, like, follow me to the library, right? You had some other reason to be there?” she started, sounding like the world’s most self-obsessed person but really needing to be sure about it.</p>
<p>He chuckled and looked at her with his stupid half-smile. “I’ve been coming to this library for years. The last few weeks, I’ve been coming here after school to try to catch up with everything… It’s quiet and no one else from school really comes in.” He rubbed the back of his neck, uncomfortable. </p>
<p>Ginny smiled. She was glad he was finally taking an interest in his school work again. She hadn’t realised he had already been trying to get back on track.</p>
<p>He continued, “After-- when I did all those assignments while you were working…” He trailed off and was he… blushing? Oh, right. Yes. He was probably thinking of what they had done on her lunch break. God, that was mortifying. There was no way Ginny was going to be talking about that with him. Ever.</p>
<p>He cleared his throat and tried again, “Yeah, well, after that day, I kinda realised it was doable. I could get all my work done and catch up on what I’d missed after… Mike. So, I spoke to some of my teachers, got some extra credit assignments and--”</p>
<p>“Sorry, you don’t need to explain it to me. I just didn’t expect to see you here.” Ginny replied, feeling super awkward. It was like they just didn’t know how to talk to each other. Had it always been this difficult to have a conversation with another person? She felt like everything they wanted to say just kept coming out wrong.</p>
<p>They needed to address the elephant in the room. </p>
<p>She took a deep breath, ready to have this uncomfortable conversation. “Listen, about last night…” </p>
<p>He looked at her immediately, his eyes wide and panicked. “I’m so sorry! I had no right to say any of that to you, I’m sorry I made it all about me and my past and I didn’t want to try to manipulate you but I just wanted--”</p>
<p>“No, I just, I wanted you to know that I forgive you. I had already forgiven you before - you said what you said. I am glad that you felt safe talking to me about all the stuff you had going on. I want to be in your life, I just-- Can we just--” She couldn’t put it into words. She didn’t really know what she wanted, exactly. He was looking at her so hopefully and she didn’t want to crush him, but she also didn’t want to lead him on.</p>
<p>“I meant what I said about, me not being able to love you, like that. I’m sorry, I just, it’s probably like a protective thing? I’m just not ready to be vulnerable like that again, hopefully ever in my life? But I really care about you. I like you. We can talk, and things. Maybe we can be friends?” Again, it wasn’t sounding as convincing as she wanted it to, and she could tell by the way his smile didn’t meet his eyes that he was a bit crushed by her admission. </p>
<p>“Yeah, I’d like that.” He said, still smiling.</p>
<p>She got up and got ready to go home. Things still felt really off. She wanted to give him a hug but didn’t feel that would be right either. Everything just felt wrong and awkward and awful. Being a teenager fucking sucked. She just wanted to do the smart thing, and not get involved with someone who was so messed up, but she just kept getting drawn back to him.</p>
<p>“How could I know you wouldn’t just go back to Padma anytime things got tough?” She couldn’t help but ask. It was something that had been worrying her, even though she knew she definitely wasn’t going to give him another chance. “Not that - I mean, we’re just friends so you could go back to your ex and it wouldn’t bother me, it’s just--”</p>
<p>He stood up and smiled, a real smile, walking close to her and cradling her face in his hands; his intense staring penetrating all her defenses. “I have no interest in being with anyone at all, except for you. I’ve accepted my feelings now, Ginny. I know why I was so scared, and I’m not running from it anymore. I’ll never run from you again. You’re it for me.” He said, without an ounce of uncertainty. </p>
<p>It must be nice to feel so certain about things. Ginny wouldn’t know. She could overthink her overthinking. She could worry herself in circles about the tiniest of things, but here he was, making these ridiculous declarations like he had nothing to lose. </p>
<p>“How could you-- We’ve only-- Marcus, that doesn’t make any sense,” she wasn’t sure if she was trying to convince him that his feelings couldn’t be real or if she was just trying to keep herself safely in denial.</p>
<p>He stroked her hair and smiled at her, like she was the cutest, most innocent little thing. She wanted to be angry about it, but she remembered that he called her an angry little kitten the last time she tried to remind him how terrifying she was. </p>
<p>“You know it does. The way I’ve felt when I’m around you… It doesn’t matter if we were together or not. I feel like I could do anything with you by my side,” he leaned closer, resting his forehead on hers and closing his eyes, whispering, “I know I hurt you. I know you’re afraid. I’ll never stop being sorry for that.” </p>
<p>Ginny swallowed, hard. Being this close to him, hearing him talk like this - it was hard to deny that she still felt so much for him. His words could turn her into a pile of mush, and her legs were already starting to feel weak. He shouldn’t be able to have this power over her. It wasn’t fair.</p>
<p>She closed her eyes, trying to remember that numb feeling after she saw him with Padma. The anger and the fury. Where was the fury? The resentment? What had happened to those feelings? Putting her hand on his chest, feeling how hard and fast his heart was beating, it was difficult to summon the willpower to move away from him instead of grabbing him and pulling him close. It would be so easy to close the distance between them.</p>
<p>But… then what? Start making out in secret, constantly worried that he was going to find some imaginary slight against her that would push him back into his ex-girlfriend’s arms? </p>
<p>Fall deeper into this thing with him only for him to start treating her the way he’s been treating Padma? It was unfair to hold that against him, she knew that. She knew so much more about that relationship now. However, fear was not a fair or rational thing.</p>
<p>Ginny opened her eyes and saw him looking at her with resignation. He knew what she was thinking before she had even verbalised it. He could read it on her face, she knew. He had told her that he knew her every expression, and she hadn’t really considered that before now. </p>
<p>She took her hand off his chest and stepped back. They were both breathing pretty heavily, considering that all they had done was stand close to each other. Sometimes, he made her feel like there wasn’t enough oxygen going around. </p>
<p>She smiled at him, the awkward feeling returning. They were stuck in this kind of limbo - they didn’t know how to be friends without crossing the boundary beyond it. There had always been that tension between them before, but it was so much worse now that Marcus was just running around throwing the L-bomb like it wasn’t the most terrifying thing to admit. He was determined to prove it and she was determined to ignore it forever. She wasn’t going back there. </p>
<p>Probably.</p>
<p>“I do want to be friends with you,” Ginny finally repeated, looking up at him and trying her best not to blush. His eyes were so serious as he catalogued her expression, really trying to find any signs of insincerity.</p>
<p>“I’d be honored to be friends with you,” he replied with a smile, stepping closer to her once more when he was certain that she wasn’t just lying to make him feel better.</p>
<p>He didn’t seem to notice that he was always unconsciously moving closer to her, crowding her, his stance protective and possessive at once. Even if he did, he probably wouldn’t have been able to stop himself. She just always seemed to be pulling him towards her. </p>
<p>“We can, um, hang out. In public places, with people around,” she tried, thinking of all the boundaries she could put in place to make sure they didn’t fall into bad habits.</p>
<p>He smirked at her, likely remembering just how much they were happy to do when they had been together in public, at her place of work, no less. Ginny frowned at him, trying to indicate that he had better not put those thoughts into words.</p>
<p>He cleared his throat and licked his lips. Ginny’s eyes followed the trail of his tongue, unable to look away. Without intending to, she let out a wistful sigh and bit her lip, drawing Marcus’ attention to her mouth. He shamelessly pulled her towards him and let out a low groan, fighting with his need to claim her, remind her of what they had, and his fear of scaring her away.</p>
<p>He never wanted to give her any reason to put distance between them again. He closed his eyes and stepped back, desperately trying to control himself and finally realising how tough it might be to maintain this friendship with the girl he was so madly in love with. </p>
<p>“I’ll go anywhere, as long as I can be with you,” he responded, fervently. She looked at him with narrow eyes, perturbed by the intensity of what he was saying. Right, he needed to stop saying things that would remind her that he was in love with her and scare her away.</p>
<p>“Right. Um, yes. Well, I will leave you to it now. I have to go home and you have a date with Gladys in the library so…” she was trying to break the tension created by his intense statement, but all he could feel was disappointment that their time together was ending so soon. </p>
<p>“You can text me, if you get bored,” she continued, “Or, you know, if you need some help. I’m fantastic at everything so, I would understand if--”</p>
<p>“Yes! I’ll need help,” he agreed eagerly, not quite knowing what he was signing himself up for but also knowing that it would be worth it if he could spend more time with her. Her face lit up at the prospect of being able to help him get ahead with his studies and his heart melted, completely. </p>
<p>“Really?” She asked eagerly, moving closer to him once more, “I was kind of joking but if you’re serious, maybe we can set up a study schedule? I already have one for myself, of course, but I’d be happy to make one for you as well! We can work out how long it will take for you to catch up with all the extra credit work and then maybe we can start studying for our exams together!” </p>
<p>Marcus’ eyes widened at the amount of bubbly energy suddenly radiating from her. Wow, she really cared about school. This wouldn’t be a bad way for him to get closer to her, he supposed.</p>
<p>He smiled, realising how much time she would be willing to spend with him if they were studying together outside of school. “I’d really appreciate that,” he said, and he really meant it. Having her there to focus and discipline him would really help him to get everything done more quickly. </p>
<p>“I’ll make a list of all my assignments and extra credit work by tomorrow so we can have a look at making a study schedule after school,” he suggested, already looking forward to meeting her, intentionally, at the library the next day. </p>
<p>If possible, the look she gave him after he agreed to use a study schedule was filled with more passion and tension than when they had been standing together, pressed up against each other, staring at each other’s lips. She looked like she was torn between hugging him with excitement or straight up jumping him right there, right now. He would have been happy with either option, to be honest.</p>
<p>Sadly, she took a deep breath and seemed to come to her senses. She couldn’t wipe the smile off her face, though.</p>
<p>“Great! I guess I’ll see you here after school, tomorrow?” she said, preparing to turn and walk away from him. At the last minute, she rushed up to him and gave him a hug, “I’m really glad we’re trying this whole friends thing. I’ve… I missed you,” she blushed and hurried away, refusing to look him in the eye. </p>
<p>Delighted by that interaction and feeling more motivated than ever, Marcus smashed out two more extra credit assignments that evening at the library before heading home, unable to wipe the grin off his face all night.</p>
<p>-</p>
<p>Despite her feelings when they were together, Ginny was starting to regret her decision to spend so much time with Marcus by the time she got home. It wasn’t that she was trying to punish him or anything, she just… she still felt so torn about what was going on between them. She was finding it really difficult to get over the fact that he was able to inspire such strong emotional reactions in her. </p>
<p>The fact that she was already struggling to keep her hands off him, less than two weeks after she had found him with his ex, was really troubling to her. She didn’t want to constantly be on this emotional rollercoaster where she was feeling incredible whenever she was with him but anxious and paranoid when she was alone. </p>
<p>Being friends with him, even in a limited capacity, was dangerous. There was something about Marcus Baker that just made Ginny lose all sense of rationality. The way he claimed to be in love with her, despite all the ways he had already hurt her, was a clear red flag, right? He shouldn’t have been able to even think of being with Padma if he loved Ginny like he had claimed. His trust issues and insecurity around her relationship with Hunter was another major problem.</p>
<p>Just because he made her feel like nothing else mattered when they were together, that didn’t mean that they could exist only in their little bubble. If he wanted to be her friend, he would have to be able to spend time with her when they weren’t alone and horny. They’d have to have real conversations and not be ashamed to be seen together in public. She didn’t even know who his friends were.</p>
<p>MB: Are you sure it’s okay for me to text you?</p>
<p>No. She was definitely not sure that it was okay for him to text her. She was rethinking everything that she had said and done today and didn’t want to have anything to do with him anymore.</p>
<p>GM: Yes.</p>
<p>MB: And I can still watch The Office?</p>
<p>GM: How am I going to stop you from watching The Office?</p>
<p>MB: But can I talk to you about it?</p>
<p>GM: … yes.</p>
<p>MB: Okay, good, because WHAT THE HELL is wrong with Michael and Jan?!</p>
<p>GM: so much.</p>
<p>She said he could talk to her about it; she couldn’t guarantee that she’d have anything to say to him in return though. She just didn’t feel like responding, so she didn’t. There wasn’t anything else to say. It didn’t stop him from messaging her repeatedly.</p>
<p>MB: I’m so sorry.</p>
<p>And apologising constantly. Ginny really didn’t understand what he was doing or why he was doing it. She didn’t really care though. Sometimes she spoke to him, sometimes she ignored him. Her feelings were all over the place and she had no clue what she wanted. There was a tiny, spiteful part of her that didn’t forgive him, and still wanted to punish him for hurting her. When she was with him, those thoughts were awfully quiet, but they came back with a vengeance as soon as he was out of sight. It was seriously fucking her up.</p>
<p>Aunt Maddie and Caleb were going home on Sunday, so her mom and Austin were trying to squeeze as much fun and enjoyment out of the remainder of Friday evening and Saturday as they possibly could. That meant a lot of going out for mom and Aunt Maddie, and a lot of babysitting for Ginny. She enjoyed spending time with the boys, but they had a LOT of energy. The only bonus was that they loved Harry Potter just as much as she did, so she could easily make up fantasy game scenarios for them to play based around magic.  </p>
<p>On Saturday, when she got home from work, Marcus and the boys had set up an actual Quidditch Pitch in the backyard and were pretending to be flying around with their brooms. Apparently, they had spent the morning making and decorating the hoops for each end of the garden, and were testing them out to see if they would survive various balls being thrown at them from a distance. It seemed that their structural integrity was able to withstand even the hardest of throws. </p>
<p>By the time their moms had returned home, all the kids in the house were exhausted. They had played quidditch matches with every combination of teams possible - kids versus teenagers, Millers vs others, Slytherins (Ginny and Caleb) vs Hufflepuffs (Marcus and Austin).</p>
<p>In a quiet moment, when Caleb had gone upstairs to help his mom with the packing, Austin opened up to Ginny and Marcus about his anxieties around returning to school.</p>
<p>“I wish…” He started, then trailed off, scared and embarrassed to be feeling so scared. He didn’t want to ruin the day, but he was starting to get a tummy ache about having to go back to school and having to face Zach again. Ginny didn’t say anything to try to make him finish his thought, she just pulled him into a hug as they all lay in the grass.</p>
<p>“I wish you could all come to school with me. I wish Caleb didn’t have to go. The kids at school… they don’t like me.” He was looking up at the sky while the tears fell down his face and into the grass. He didn’t mind if Ginny and Marcus knew that he was crying and scared. He didn’t think they would be mean to him about it.<br/>Ginny’s heart broke for her little brother. She hated that she couldn’t be at school with him, that she couldn’t protect him from the little shit, Zach, who was making his life difficult. She knew their mom had already tried to sort him out, but the little prick persisted with his bullying. Austin was too sweet and kind to stick up for himself, and bullies loved to prey on the innocent.</p>
<p>“You know, when I was in elementary school, there was a kid who was always mean to me, and it made me hate going to school,” Ginny was surprised to hear Marcus talking about being bullied at school as though it were something normal, something that could happen to anyone.</p>
<p>Austin gasped, amazed that his hero had been in a situation similar to him. “Really? Why would anyone be mean to you?” he started to sound angry, like he couldn’t believe that anyone had dared to cause trouble for his personal idol.</p>
<p>“Well, I was pretty quiet,” Marcus responded with a sheepish smile, looking up at Austin who had sat up and moved closer to hear every word coming out of Marcus’ mouth, “and I didn’t tell anyone about it. I didn’t think the teachers would believe me or care.” He trailed off, that sad, lost look in his eye as he was lost in a memory.</p>
<p>“They weren’t hurting me in ways that could be proven, you know? They just said mean things and pushed me around, but never enough to get anyone’s attention.” Austin was still looking at him, rapt, unable to believe that someone else had gone through exactly what was happening to him as well. He was confused when he saw Marcus start smiling before he continued speaking.</p>
<p>“Then, one day, this scrappy little kid saw the bullies pushing me around in the playground. There was no one else around, and I think he could tell that this wasn’t the first time these guys had picked on me.” He laughed, remembering it fondly, and Ginny was afraid that she knew exactly who the scrappy little kid might have been. Tears escaped her eyes as she, too, sat up to hear Marcus’ story.</p>
<p>“Anyway, this kid comes over, and I’m scared the bullies are going to start picking on him. I mean, he was tiny, they could have knocked him out with one finger. But… Instead of trying to fight them, he launches himself onto the floor and punches himself right in the eye. It was so shocking! None of us had any idea what was happening. He just started screaming and crying until an adult came over. He looked a mess, crying and covered in dirt…” </p>
<p>“It turned out, these guys had a habit on picking on kids and making them think that no one would believe them if they told. When the adults came over to see what was wrong, he made up this whole story about how the bullies had been pushing him around for weeks and now they had thrown him on the ground and he had hit his head on a rock.”</p>
<p>Marcus laughed at the shocked looks on Austin and Ginny’s faces. “Yeah! He totally made it up, but he was crying and red and so small, it was really easily believable. The teachers couldn’t ignore a kid crying about being thrown to the ground and hitting his head, and they obviously didn’t believe the bullies when they denied it. Then other kids started to come forward about how they had been bullied as well, and the bullies got into loads of trouble. They never bothered me again,” he finished his story with a sad smile.</p>
<p>Austin looked like he had just been handed the keys to a magical kingdom that he would get to explore as often as he wanted. Pure awe and wonder radiated from him as he thought about the implications of Marcus’ tale. He had been feeling weak and powerless when Zach was mean to him, because he was too afraid of what would happen if he told an adult and they didn’t care or didn’t believe him. The real power was in getting everyone to see how mean the bullies were, though. No one wanted to get in trouble with the teachers for bullying.</p>
<p>He thanked Marcus and gave him a big plan, running upstairs to find Caleb and start planning what he could do on Monday.</p>
<p>Ginny, on the other hand, was trying to make it less obvious that she was an absolute mess after hearing the story of how Marcus met his dead best friend. She was pressing the palms of her hands against her eyes to try to stem the flow of tears, but they just kept coming with a vengeance. She gave up and threw herself back down onto the grass, reaching out to hold Marcus’ hand in hers.</p>
<p>She didn’t have to ask to know that he had been talking about Mike. She could see it in his eyes and hear it in his voice. It was incredibly kind for him to share that story, despite how painful it might have been, just to make Austin feel better about being bullied. </p>
<p>Marcus rolled onto his side, leaning over her and wiping the tears from her face. He smiled conspiratorially and reached into his pocket, saying, “If you tell anyone about this, they won’t believe you.” He pulled an actual handkerchief out of his pocket, like he was an old man from the 1920s, and handed it to her. </p>
<p>The fuck was she supposed to do with that? She wasn’t wiping her nose with it - that was gross.</p>
<p>“My grandad used to tell us all these stories about chivalrous knights and gentlemen always having handkerchiefs for the crying women in their lives,” he said with a grin, “And he always gave me one on my birthday, asking if I had any lovely ladies in my life,” he looked at her, and the grin slowly fell from his face. He stroked her hair and used the handkerchief to wipe the tears from her eyes, then moved as though ready to wipe her nose for her. Absolutely fucking not.</p>
<p>She sat up and grabbed the handkerchief from his hand and wiped her face hastily, stashing it in her pocket and vowing to wash it before returning it to him. She narrowed her eyes at him as he laughed uproariously and she growled, launching herself at him and poking him in the chest and stomach.</p>
<p>Ginny had no idea he was so ticklish, as he instinctively wriggled away from her and crawled into a defensive stance with his hands in front of him. </p>
<p>“Okay, now, let’s not do anything rash,” He started, backing away and not liking the look of pure evil enjoyment on Ginny’s face as she realised his weakness. He could not handle being tickled at all and would fight to the death to spare himself the discomfort.</p>
<p>“Oh? Like, trying to wipe someone else’s nose for them?” She asked innocently, moving forward slowly, trying not to let on that she was ready to pounce. </p>
<p>“Now, Ginny, I have seen the error of my ways and I’m not going to do that again, but I will warn you that I cannot control any harm that may befall you if you try to tickle me,” he warned, still moving backwards, eyes wide.</p>
<p>“The last person who tried to tickle me ended up with a broken nose!” And Maxine had totally deserved, he remembered with a smug grin. He looked up at Ginny and saw that she wasn’t backing off.</p>
<p>“I’m serious! She had to go to the hospital. There was blood everywhere! It’s not worth the risk,” he explained, trying to sound threatening. He started to relax when he saw Ginny visibly hesitating and eventually give up, deciding it wouldn’t be worth a broken nose. </p>
<p>She sighed, “Fine. But if you ever try to wipe my nose again, all bets are off,” she muttered, narrowing her eyes at him and crossing her arms.</p>
<p>“What if I accidentally break your nose and I need to wipe the blood away?” he asked innocently, as though that were something that could easily happen any day.</p>
<p>“Don’t break my nose and we won’t have to worry about that…?” she responded, not knowing where he was going with this.</p>
<p>“What if you accidentally break my nose?” he asked, moving closer and closer to her, both of them kneeling in the grass, facing each other. He didn’t stop until he was practically pressed against her, looking down at her face and placing his hand on her hip. “Will you wipe the blood from my nose if you do?” he whispered to her, unfathomably making the ridiculous question sound like an erotic request, rather than a violent hypothetical.</p>
<p>Ginny swallowed hard and tried to remember how to breathe. This wasn’t fair. He knew how she felt when she was near him and it wasn’t very friendly to remind her of the effect he could have on her just by looking at her like that. She could feel his hands sliding up from her hips, up to her waist, and she couldn’t stop herself from taking a deep breath and letting out a little whimper. </p>
<p>The look in his eyes went from teasing to dangerously hungry immediately. He dug his hands into her shirt and pulled her closer to him, rubbing against her slightly as she let out a sigh. Fuck, she had missed this feeling. The heat rushing through her body, her heart beating out of her chest. She couldn’t imagine feeling this way with anyone else and that scared her as much as it excited her. </p>
<p>Marcus hadn’t meant for this to happen. He had been trying to lure her into a false sense of security, and then he was going to tickle her mercilessly to teach her a lesson for trying to tickle him. He hadn’t expected her reaction when he was close enough to touch her.</p>
<p>He had thought that her mistrust and fear of him hurting her would have turned her off him completely. He really believed that she would never allow herself to be vulnerable with him anymore, and he didn’t want to push her away by losing control of himself when he was near her. He didn’t want to be with her physically if she still didn’t know how she felt about him. He knew she would regret it and resent him if he gave into his desires for her before she was ready to be with him fully. </p>
<p>At the same time, he knew that he had already overstepped and lost control of this situation. He had waited too long once he was able to feel her skin under his hands, he had let his touch linger too long, and now she was looking at him like she wanted him to take her right here, in the open, where anyone could see them. He had missed his opportunity to playfully tickle her to deescalate the situation. He couldn’t step back and stop this from moving forward, because she would take that as rejection and immediately shut herself off from him. </p>
<p>She was putting herself out there, offering herself to him, and he was so incredibly tempted to close the gap between them, and remind himself how it could feel to be with her. Marcus was terrified of fucking this up. If he moved too soon and scared her away, he didn’t know if she would ever let him be near her again. That wasn’t something he could risk. He needed this, needed her.</p>
<p>“Ginny, I…” he whispered into her ear, afraid his voice might snap her out of whatever she was feeling and remind her that he was a piece of shit who shouldn’t be anywhere near her, “I really want to kiss you right now,” he continued, noticing that she was still leaning into him, biting her lip, pressing herself against him, </p>
<p>“Please. Tell me if you don’t want this. Please, don’t let me kiss you if you don’t want me. I don’t want to push you away,” he ended up begging her, hoping he wasn’t about to have his heart broken again. Hoping he wasn’t about to lose her again. </p>
<p>Ginny sighed and shuddered, hearing he fear and worry in his voice. She had gotten so carried away, she hadn’t thought about the fact that she was making him think there was a chance for them to have a relationship. This was purely physical, she didn’t want to love him, but she didn’t want to hurt him either.</p>
<p>She cleared her throat, “Sorry. I… you’re right. I don’t want… It was just a physical… Sorry.” she pulled away from him and he immediately missed the warm feeling of having her so close to him. </p>
<p>He was such an idiot. He should have been happy to accept anything she was willing to give him, even if it would only be physical. They could be friends with benefits. He would love to be her friend and also have a physical relationship with her, even if she refused to ever give him a chance to prove that he was worthy of her love. He didn’t know how to suggest it without sounding like a fuckboy.</p>
<p>He cupped her face, smiling down at her as she looked up at him blushing. “Hey, you don’t need to apologise. Ever. I’ll take whatever you’re willing to give me,” he tried to sound reassuring, but probably just ended up sounding creepy, “I just don’t want to scare you away. I never want to lose you again. If you want something…” he swallowed hard, terrified of how she would react to the suggestion, “physical, with me, you can have it. Anything you want. I’ll take anything I can get from you.”</p>
<p>He knew how pathetic he sounded. He could see it in the way her eyes softened and she looked pityingly at him. He didn’t want her pity, but he’d take it. He had fallen hard for this girl and he didn’t think he’d ever stop falling. </p>
<p>Ginny let out a huge sigh and sat back on the grass, groaning out loud. “Marcus, I’m sorry. I don’t want to confuse you,” she whined, “and I don’t want to hurt you. I really just don’t know what I think and feel. When I’m with you, it’s… And then as soon as you’re gone, I just…” she couldn’t really put it into words. </p>
<p>“I don’t want to lead you on,” she sighed. “I don’t want you to think something can come of this. If being friends is going to be too much--”</p>
<p>“No! No, I get it, I know that you’ll never… I just- if you- I want you to know that if you ever want anything more, even if you don’t love me and don’t think you ever will, I will give you anything. Everything. Please don’t worry about hurting my feelings. You could never… I’d be happy to get anything at all you’d be willing to…” It was all coming out wrong. He wanted to convince her that he could handle a casual relationship with her, but he was coming off as desperate and pathetic. </p>
<p>He flopped down on the grass. “I like being your friend. And I like kissing and touching you. So, if you wanted any of those extra things, on top of our friendship, I’d give them to you, happily. No hard feelings. Don’t answer straight away, just think about it,” he suggested.</p>
<p>She lie back on the grass next to him and held his hand. “Alright, I’ll think about it,” she agreed. “Now, when are we going to the library?” </p>
<p>He was definitely going to live to regret asking for her help with his school work.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0031"><h2>31. Chapter 31</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>On Monday morning, before school, Ginny’s attention was completely focused on helping Austin to face his anxieties. She encouraged him to eat a small breakfast and kept his attention on her excited retellings of the highlights of their weekend. </p>
<p>She knew he was terrified of going back to school after such a long time of staying at home, and she knew he was mourning the loss of his new best friend, Caleb, who had to go back home with his mom. Whenever she managed to make him smile or laugh, she counted it as a massive success. </p>
<p>Ginny had decided that she would go early with her mom to drop Austin at school, to provide him with all the support she could. His school was close enough to hers that she wouldn’t be late to first period at all even if she stayed with him right until it was time for him to go inside. She had a feeling he was really going to need it today.</p>
<p>When they had gathered all their things and were ready to wait for their mom at the car, they were surprised by the ringing of the doorbell.</p>
<p> Ginny opened the door, only to be pushed aside as her brother ran forward screaming, “Marcus!! You’re here! What are you doing here?” as he jumped up into the arms of their teenage neighbour. </p>
<p>Bemused at having been forgotten so completely, Ginny tried to hide her smile at observing the interaction between the two boys in her life.</p>
<p>After putting Austin carefully back on the ground, Marcus responded, “Well, we heard it was your first day back to school today, so we thought we’d come and wish you luck!” </p>
<p>From behind Marcus, Maxine stepped forward and rubbed Austin’s head, bending down so she was eye-level with him. “Nah, that was Marcus’ lame idea. I’m here to ask your mom if we can take you to school to make sure no one even thinks of messing with you. We’ve got your back, buddy.” </p>
<p>She smiled and winked at him before moving towards the house, hollering, “Georgia! Can we take Austin to school this morning?” and walking inside to find their mom.</p>
<p>Ginny looked around, bewildered, trying to figure out what was going on. Marcus looked at her with a sheepish smile and Austin ran after Maxine to try to convince their mom to let him go to school with the Baker twins.</p>
<p>At Ginny’s questioning look, Marcus blurted out, “I couldn’t stop her! She asked me how the day was and I ended up telling her about Austin and she just steamrolled me into following her plan!”</p>
<p>“No, it’s a great plan! I can’t believe Maxine would want to do this for him. I think I’ve been too harsh on her these past few weeks…” Ginny was starting to feel guilty about the way she had been thinking about and treating the girls who had welcomed her into their group. Sure, they were a bit messed up sometimes, and pretty self-involved, but who wasn’t? Max had such a kind heart, it was hard to be mad at her when she focused her energy on making everyone around her feel great.</p>
<p>Her thoughts were interrupted when Austin came running back to the door, yelling, “She said we can go with the Bakers!! Hurry! Let’s go!!” with an excited Maxine running behind him and laughing.</p>
<p>“Come on, guys! Into the car! Last one there’s a Death Eater!” she screamed as they all scrambled to the car. </p>
<p>The atmosphere on the way in to Austin’s school was upbeat and lighthearted. Max and Ginny were singing along to a cheesy playlist while Austin and Marcus were in the back playing some kind of game that involved slapping their hands together. Austin yelled excitedly at the end of every match whether he was the winner or the loser. Ginny couldn’t help looking back at her brother regularly to check that he was doing okay, but she didn’t need to worry. He was having a blast with his new bestie.</p>
<p>When they got out of the car at Austin’s school, the three teenagers walked behind him looking like his dangerous bodyguards. Some kids recognised Marcus from the skate park and ran over to greet him, giving him the chance to introduce them to Austin, telling them to keep an eye on him. Austin’s little face lit up when the kids introduced themselves and offered for him to play with them before the bell went. </p>
<p>He looked tempted, but in the end, he decided he wanted to stay with Ginny and the Bakers until it was time to go in. Ginny noticed that he was looking around wearily, on high alert, probably trying to spot where that asshole Zach was. She wanted to give her brother an inspiring speech before he went to class, about ignoring the bullies and telling a teacher, but she didn’t want him to feel even more worried.</p>
<p>“So, where are the kids from your class, Austin?” Max asked as she looked around.</p>
<p>Austin pointed to a group of kids who looked like they were playing a game of tag, but stepped back making himself small. “They’re over there, but they won’t want to play with me,” he said, quietly.</p>
<p>Max frowned and looked in the direction of the other kids. “But that game looks fun! I wanna play. What do you say, Ginny? Should we go over there and make some new friends?” She was already running towards them before Ginny could stop her, so they all chased after her, ready to see what she would do next.</p>
<p>“Hey, guys! This game looks fun, can we join?” She yelled at the crowd of little kids. They looked at her for a moment, and then a small kid with glasses ran up to her and yelled, “Tag!” and ran away. Max started running around and chasing the 4th graders, and then chasing Austin, to help him to join in with the rest of them.</p>
<p>Then, she suggested they start playing Hide-and-Seek tag, where she counted to twenty (with a helper to identify the kids in their class) and then went and tried to catch everyone before they made it back home. Ginny thought she would have chosen Austin as her helper, but she chose a random kid, leaving Austin to go and find a hiding place with a small group of other children from his class. They ended up being the last group to be found, everyone running to the home base together and celebrating their win over the teenage girl.</p>
<p>Ginny and Marcus joined the team of seekers alongside Maxine in the next round, and all the rest of the kids fought to be able to hide with Austin. They trusted that he knew how the teenagers would think and that he would be able to find a spot that they’d never look for. </p>
<p>By the time their morning bell rang, everyone was laughing and sweating, and Austin was fully immersed in the crowd of kids in his class. Ginny hadn’t seen any sign of that asshole who had been making Austin’s life a hell, but she knew things wouldn’t be easy for her brother all day. She worried about what the rest of his school day would be like as they walked back to the car, ready to head to their own school.</p>
<p>“Man, I missed running around playing games like that! When did it stop being cool to have fun?” Whined Maxine as she pulled into school. “We should definitely bring back those games!” Ginny couldn’t help her laugh as she imagined Max trying to convince their friends to play hide-and-seek tag.</p>
<p>“I would pay to see you ask Abbie to play hide-and-seek tag with you!” she laughed, imagining the look on the girl’s face at the thought of having to sweat in her free time. She was glad to be able to enjoy spending time with her friends in such a care-free way. </p>
<p>Before they entered school, Ginny stopped Max and Marcus and pulled them both into a hug. “Thank you for this morning,” she whispered, not wanting to get all teary over the fact that these two ridiculous people made Austin’s morning so much better than she could have expected.</p>
<p>She stepped back and looked at them. Max was smiling widely and Marcus was rubbing his neck, smiling at her with a slight blush on his face. “Honestly, you guys. He was dreading this morning so much, but you completely distracted him and made it so fun. You’re really good friends,” she said with a smile, ready to face her own first day back at school.</p>
<p>Other than the fact that she was walking into school with both of the Baker twins at her side, school had remained pretty much unchanged in her time away. As they approached Berry Tree, Ginny expected Marcus to drift over to where his friends were, leaving her to hang out with the rest of MANG. She was surprised when, instead, he stopped with her and pulled her to the side.</p>
<p>He looked around, seeming self-conscious and then asked,  “Hey, um, would you want to come and meet my friends? They’re standing over there,” he gestured in the general direction of the red section that he usually stayed in.</p>
<p>Ginny’s eyes widened as she took in the fact that Marcus was trying to bring her into his world more, letting her get to know the people who were important to him. She wasn’t ready to meet his friends, was she? She didn’t even know what was happening between them! How was he going to introduce her?</p>
<p>She made eye contact with Max, who had been not-so-subtly watching the interaction between her brother and her friend. Her eyes were wide with shock as well, until her face suddenly lit up with excitement. She started gesturing to Ginny, mouthing, “Go! Go!” and giving her a look that clearly translated to, “you will be telling me EVERY detail about this when we go home!”</p>
<p>Trying to fight a blush while looking back at Marcus, Ginny agreed and let him lead her towards a group of people who seemed to be having a really lively discussion. As they got nearer, someone broke off from the group and ran excitedly up to them, yelling, “Marcus!” and jumping into his arms.</p>
<p>It almost reminded Ginny of Austin’s reaction to seeing Marcus, and she started to feel bad that she never greeted him with such enthusiasm. Clearly, there was something wrong with her, she thought sarcastically, chuckling to herself.</p>
<p>“Dude, where were you this weekend? You missed the tournament! I won first place and stuck it to all the assholes who said a girl couldn’t win the skateboarding competition and you weren’t there to celebrate with me!” </p>
<p>Unlike Austin, this person who had thrown themselves at Marcus appeared to be a very cute, dainty-looking girl with big blue eyes and long blonde hair. She was giving off major Tinkerbell vibes and Ginny was surprised she hadn’t ever noticed her before. </p>
<p>The girl was pouting up at Marcus when he put her down and ruffled her hair, and Ginny noted with amusement that she hadn’t been noticed yet. It was strange to observe Marcus interacting with people their age and not looking like he was being tortured. He actually smiled at another person! </p>
<p>Marcus ran his and through his hair and shot a quick look at Ginny before responding, “Oh, yeah, sorry Alex. My mom found my entire stash and grounded me completely. She locked my window and everything. There was no way for me to escape this time,” he smiled sheepishly, and the girl, Alex, seemed to melt in front of him. She smiled and twirled her hair around her finger while leaning forward unconsciously.</p>
<p>Ginny stood, fascinated by the encounter. First, because Marcus was totally full of shit. Ellen hadn’t found any weed on him this weekend, she had actually seemed really happy with him lately as a matter of fact. Second, because while this girl was standing with Marcus, Ginny could see a guy in the background watching the entire interaction with narrowed eyes. </p>
<p>He was standing with the group and people were talking to him, but his entire being was focused on the conversation taking place between Marcus and Alex. He looked like he really didn’t like the idea of competing with Marcus for this girl’s attention, but Alex didn’t even seem to notice anyone else when she was talking to Marcus. Interesting. Some kind of love triangle happening in this friendship group? Ginny supposed there was some kind of drama in every group of friends.</p>
<p>While Alex responded something about Ellen needing to chill out about a bit of weed, Ginny noticed that Marcus’ attention was split between the group of people standing ahead of them and the girl in front of him. He looked nervous and Ginny couldn’t figure out why he wasn’t moving towards them. Had he changed his mind about introducing her to his friends? </p>
<p>She glanced back at Berry Tree to see that Max, Abbie, and Nora were now all looking at her, seeming just as confused as she was. She made a face at them as if to say, “I know right? What am I supposed to do??” and they made exaggerated, “I have no idea!” faces at her. </p>
<p>Snorting with laughter at what idiots her friends were being, she didn’t realise that her movement had drawn the attention of both Marcus and Alex.</p>
<p>They were both looking at her when she turned back towards them. Awkward! </p>
<p>“Oh, sorry! Hi, I’m Ginny, I was just asking this guy here for directions. I’m new here, don’t mind me. I think I’ll go ask those kind-looking girls over there!” she started to make her escape back to her friends when she felt Marcus’ hand grabbing onto her bag, stopping her from making her quick getaway. God damn! She turned back towards him with an innocent smile on her face.</p>
<p>“Nope. You’re not going anywhere,” he stated, still holding onto the back of her bag, “Alex, this is Ginny. She’s new here and moved in across the street from me. We need to introduce her to our friends or she will be stuck hanging out with my sister and her lame friends, okay?” </p>
<p>He didn’t wait for a response. He just put his arm, forcefully, around Ginny’s shoulders to make sure she didn’t try to escape again, and basically frog marched her towards his friends. Every instinct in Ginny’s body was telling her to flee. There was some weird tension between Marcus and Alex and the angry guy in the group - she wanted absolutely no part of it.</p>
<p>She had no idea why Marcus had decided that today would be the day he forced her to socialise with his people. They had barely only made up, and he should be using this time to grovel at her feet, not bringing her into his messed up love triangle friends! All too soon, they were standing with his group of friends.</p>
<p>“Yo! Everyone, this is Ginny. She’s cool and we need to save her from having to hang out with my sister and her lame friends,” he joked as he made his way over to his friends.</p>
<p>She was not going to be happy if she had to sit with this group of strangers and let them insult her friends the whole time.</p>
<p>A good-looking blonde guy with glasses looked her up and down before responding with a cheeky grin, “Are you sure she wants to be rescued, man? She doesn’t look too happy to be here. Did you kidnap this poor girl?” Ginny smiled, grateful that he was trying to break the tension, but was still feeling a bit uncomfortable. </p>
<p>Alex had trailed behind them and went to stand with the angry-looking guy, before grabbing him and bringing him into a really hot kiss. The group didn’t really seem all that surprised by it, but Ginny couldn’t pull her eyes away. They were really going at it in the middle of the hallway. It was a bit weird that Alex’s eyes were open and focused on Marcus the entire time they were kissing, but Ginny wasn’t getting involved with that. At all. </p>
<p>She tried to return the banter with the blonde guy, James, who had spoken to her, but it was pretty lacklustre. She didn’t think she’d have anything in common with these guys at all. Maybe she would have got on with Alex, but there seemed to be some tension between her and Marcus and Ginny didn’t think the girl would be too welcoming to another female presence encroaching on her territory.</p>
<p>They were talking about the skateboarding competition over the weekend and Ginny was honestly trying to pay attention, but she had no idea what all the technical terms they were talking about could mean. Marcus seemed to be more quiet than usual and wasn’t really joining in the conversation either.</p>
<p>Thankfully, James tried to engage her in conversation while the others were gushing about skateboarding. “I take it you’re not much into skateboarding,” he asked wryly, likely noticing the panicked way her eyes moved as she tried to keep up with the conversation.</p>
<p>She smiled, and responded, “Oh, me? How could you tell?” making him laugh, before she continued, “I never really learned to skateboard, I spent a lot of my childhood riding on motorbikes with my parents though?” she offered, hoping they’d be able to talk about something she was more interested in.</p>
<p>“Aw, nice. I’m totally dedicated to the skating life, but my man Marcus here has been riding his new motorbike for a couple weeks now, haven’t you?” he said a bit louder, bringing Marcus into their little conversation as well. Marcus shot an annoyed look at James and Ginny’s eyes widened. She hadn’t known that he was riding his bike. </p>
<p>“Have you been having lessons?” she asked, concerned. Riding a motorbike wasn’t something you just picked up easily on your own. There was a lot that could go wrong if you weren’t careful.</p>
<p>“No, I’ve just been practising on quiet roads, getting a feel for the bike. I can’t take a course until December,” he responded, sounding a bit guilty. Well, at least he knew it was a risky decision.</p>
<p>When Ginny looked up at him, she didn’t expect to see him staring at her so intently in front of all of his friends. She swallowed hard and smiled at him, trying to convey that he didn’t need to explain himself to her. “That makes sense,” she breathed, trying to make sure she kept looking into his eyes and didn’t get distracted by his lips. “I just don’t want you to get hurt,” she finished, lamely, looking away from him. </p>
<p>Their little mini conversation ended awkwardly and Ginny tried to listen to the conversation happening with the rest of the group. It had been going pretty well, until she felt Marcus’ fingers playing lightly with the hairs on the back of her neck. She closed her eyes and shuddered, reveling in the feeling of the light touches to her skin.</p>
<p>Ginny glanced to the side to see Marcus looking innocently at the person speaking, but with a slight smirk giving away the fact that he knew exactly what he was doing. She narrowed her eyes, determined to ignore him, when he started stroking her more firmly, running his fingers down the front of her neck and along her shoulders. Ginny could feel the heat spreading through her body as her breathing got heavier.</p>
<p>He knew what his touch could do to her, why was he doing this in front of his friends? </p>
<p>Ginny stepped away from him slightly, trying to put some distance between them without arousing suspicion from the people around them, but failing as he just followed her with his stupidly long arms. She turned to glare at him, but only realised her mistake when it was too late. His attention was totally focused on her lips and he looked like he wanted to pounce on her right there, not caring who was watching. His fingers dug into her hair and he pulled lightly, tilting her head up so she was forced to look him directly in the eye.</p>
<p>She closed her eyes and tried not to moan. She could explore her body’s reaction to Marcus’ manhandling later. Right now, she needed to get through meeting his friends without looking like an actual prostitute. </p>
<p>She cleared her throat and hit his hand away from her, glaring at him subtly as she did. She started backing away, ready to make a run for her locker. “Well, it was nice meeting you all. I have to go to my locker before first period, so… I’ll see you around!” she waved as she walked quickly in the direction of her locker. She really did need to get some books out and she only had a few minutes until the bell went, so it was a reasonable excuse.</p>
<p>She rolled her eyes when she heard footsteps following her down an empty corridor. He caught up to her easily enough, and put his hand around her shoulders as they continued walking.</p>
<p>“That was not cute.” She said, trying to sound angry, but failing miserably.</p>
<p>“It was kind of cute,” he responded with a smile.</p>
<p>She rounded on him, beginning to feel annoyed by his cuteness, “We’re supposed to be doing the friends thing, Marcus. You know how I react when you touch me like that. That wasn’t very friendly.” She refused to look at his face, knowing he’d use his prettiness as a weapon.</p>
<p>He cupped her face and she moved away from him, not wanting to feel his tender touch at that moment. It was too confusing.</p>
<p>He sighed, running his hand through his hair.</p>
<p>“I’m sorry. I got carried away. I’ll be better, I promise.” He responded, moving closer to her with his hands in the air. He tilted her chin up so he could look her in the eyes and whispered, “Forgive me?” </p>
<p>This boy played dirty. He knew she couldn’t resist the sad look in his little puppy dog eyes, especially when he was standing so close to her. It was too easy for her to forget how much pain he was capable of causing her when he looked at her like that. He was dangerous. </p>
<p>She nodded without looking away from his face and his face broke into a wide grin. Fuck, his smile left her breathless. He shouldn’t be allowed to just brandish it in public like that. It was beautiful and it was blinding. Ginny couldn’t look away. “Fine, but you’re carrying my books around for me all day,” she responded eventually.</p>
<p>“I’d be honored to escort the lady around for as long as she’ll have me,” he responded in his best impression of a fancy knight. He kissed the back of her hand and then placed her hand in the crook of his elbow as he walked them to her locker.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Hey guys, thanks for all the really kind comments you've been leaving. I don't know when I'll be updating the story again in the future. My job has become really draining and demanding and I'm not really finding the time to think about where I want my story to go.</p>
<p>I've hit a bit of a wall because I'm not a huge fan of the end of G&amp;G's first season but I haven't got the brain power to really think about how I would want to change it. If you have any ideas or suggestions for where you'd want to see the story going, please let me know. Maybe I could be inspired by your ideas? </p>
<p>Or even better, write a fic so I can read about your ideas and be inspired that way! </p>
<p>This will probably be the last time you hear from me for a while. Sorry to disappoint you.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0032"><h2>32. Chapter 32</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Alright. So. Apparently writing is the only thing that can distract me from the stresses of my job. Go figure! So, here's another chapter. Can't promise any kind of quality assurance. I literally wrote it and then posted it. Any spelling and grammar errors are just going to stay there until I have the energy to reread/edit later.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Marcus Baker, the other half of my soul, the boy I shared a WOMB with, has never, IN HIS LIFE introduced me to his friends, willingly. He spent the entire first year of middle school pretending we weren’t even related, and I’m a god damned delight!” Ginny was trying to keep a straight face throughout Max’s dramatic tale of woe, but she was just finding her too hilarious! She could barely keep up with this absolute madwoman and she loved it. </p>
<p>“Awww, babe. I’d never deny you,” she responded instead, trying to sound overly sincere and sympathetic.</p>
<p>“Right? And then, this morning, not only does he DRAG ME OUT OF BED 45 MINUTES EARLY to cheer up your adorable little brother, but he then proceeds to invite you, with his WORDS, to meet his friends. How? What witchcraft have you used on my poor, naive, unsuspecting little manchild of a brother?” She got right up into Ginny’s face and eyed her closely, pretending to look at her with a magnifying glass.</p>
<p>Ginny swatted her away. “I didn’t do anything to your damned brother. I have no idea what this morning was about either. If anything, I think it’s Austin that’s really charmed him,” she smiled, thinking about the relationship her brother had cultivated with his older neighbour.</p>
<p>“Yeah,” Max sighed, “Austin’s a little babe. He should totally just come to our school to hang out with us every day!” she suggested with an adorable smile. She narrowed her eyes and zeroed in on Ginny again, “Aha! Nice try, using the adorable little Austin to try to distract me from the real story here! Now, spill it before Abbie and Nora get here,” she pointed a finger accusingly at Ginny, who was trying to eat her lunch innocently without making eye contact. </p>
<p>“Okay, fine! I’ll tell you. But you have to make sure you don’t say a WORD to Abbie and Nora, and you can’t start being all dramatic about it either. Promise?” she looked at her best girl friend with a determined look on her face. If Max wasn’t going to promise not to make this all about her, Ginny wasn’t sharing shit with her.</p>
<p>“Me?? Dramatic!? You WOUND me, Virginia Baker. You cruel, cruel, woman! You beast of the night!” When she noticed Ginny roll her eyes and start to get up, unamused by her unwillingness to promise straight away, she grabbed onto her and begged, “No! I promise, sorry! I was just trying to get it all out of my system!”</p>
<p>She mimed zipping her lips and throwing away the key and looked at her friend with rapt attention.</p>
<p>“Okay,” Ginny continued, still looking suspiciously at Max for any sign of dramaticism. “Well, Marcus and I have been talking, for a while. Since you gave him my number, really…” she started, trying to decide just how much she wanted to share with her friend. She trusted Max not to judge her too harshly, but she wasn’t sure about the girl’s ability to keep an exciting secret to herself. Not that it was exciting or a secret.</p>
<p>“I guess we became friends, of a sort. We mostly just talked about family stuff. He opened up to me about,” she looked around making sure no one else was listening, “About Mike and how he felt about all that.” She wasn’t sure she should be talking about this, to be honest, and the look of shock and horror on Max’s face wasn’t making her feel any better.</p>
<p>“What??” she asked, afraid of what it might mean.</p>
<p>“Nothing, it’s just. He was in therapy for so long and he refused to talk about that stuff with a trained professional, even. It’s pretty big that he’s ready to talk about it, and to you…” Max looked more serious than Ginny had ever seen her. </p>
<p>It was surprising to think that the girl could be so worried about the brother that she was so mean to in public, but Ginny guessed that was just how they showed their affection. She clearly cared really deeply for her brother, and again, Ginny was feeling awful about having misjudged her so harshly.</p>
<p>“Yeah. It was… a lot. But it was good. I could tell he needed to talk about it and I was glad to be able to help. I thought for a while that… Well, I thought there might have been something between us, but he has too much going on. So I guess he was just trying to be friends with me?” She finished off pretty lamely, not really knowing what to think of this morning.</p>
<p>Max sighed, “Ginny, Ginny, Ginny. You, of all people, know what a dumbass my brother can be. He probably thought you’d meet his friends and realise what a catch he is and fall madly, deeply in love with him!” she joked, batting her eyelashes at her friend.</p>
<p>Ginny snorted, “Well, that didn’t happen at all. His friends were just… uncomfortable. Do you know what the deal with Alex is?” </p>
<p>“No, that girl is so weird. She used to hang around with Marcus all the time but then she started dating Simon, probably to make my brother jealous but he was totally oblivious, and now…” she shrugged, not really able to explain it all that well. “Who knows! So, no. I really have no idea what her deal is.” </p>
<p>Ginny raised her eyebrows and let out a groan, “That just sounds… so great. Delightful. I’m so glad he dragged me into that shit show,” she whined. She’d deal with that later. “So, what happened with you and Sophie?” she asked, curious about the fact that Max hadn’t mentioned the girl at all in the past week.</p>
<p>“Ugh, no I can’t. If she’s going to start talking about Sophie, I’ve got to find somewhere else to sit,” she heard from behind her as Abbie and Nora approached their table.</p>
<p>“What did I miss?” Ginny asked, excited to hear the story now.</p>
<p>Maxine had plonked her head on the table and let out a long, pained groan, so Nora took it upon herself to explain.</p>
<p>“Well, it all kind of went downhill at the Halloween party at Brody’s house,” she said quietly, with a wince, hoping not to set Maxine off with the retelling of her tragic tale. “Max had been really nervous about Sophie coming to the party, so she drank. A lot. She was wasted by the time Sophie got there and she said something to upset the girl, so she left pretty soon after arriving. They haven’t really looked at each other or spoken since,” she finished in a whisper.</p>
<p>“So, you went to a party, got drunk, and embarrassed yourself? That’s it?!” Ginny started poking at her dumbass friend until she sat up laughing.</p>
<p>“Who HASN’T gotten drunk and made an ass of themselves in front of someone they like? Have you apologised to her and explained that you only drank so much because you were so nervous about seeing her?” She asked with an eyebrow raised.</p>
<p>Max pouted and mumbled a quiet, “No.”</p>
<p>Ginny let out a sigh. “I’m starting to see how you and Marcus are related, now,” laughing to herself as she rubbed her face with the palm of her hand. “Go, find the girl! Explain that you’re a dumbass and she needs to get used to it! Apparently it’s a Baker twin thing…” </p>
<p>“Hey!” she heard from behind her, and smiled as she turned around to see Marcus standing behind her looking unimpressed.</p>
<p>“Hey yourself. Are you going to deny that you’re a dumbass when it comes to love?” she asked, trying to keep the smile from her face.</p>
<p>“Well, okay, no, I guess I can’t exactly deny that,” he responded, eyes narrowed, “But you could at least pretend…” he smiled as he sat in the empty seat next to her. He leaned closer to her and continued in a quieter voice, “How was English? Was everything alright?”</p>
<p>Ginny smiled up at him, touched that he remembered that she dreaded the lessons with Gitten because the asshole was such a flaming racist. “Yeah, we had a substitute today. No Gitten,” she grinned, and he grinned back at her, unable to help himself.</p>
<p>Abbie mimed throwing up and Ginny threw a chip at her. </p>
<p>“Ugh, your love is making me sick! When did this even happen? I can barely handle one sappy Baker twin and now there are two?”</p>
<p>Nora gasped and smacked Abbie on the arm. “Abbie! You can’t just say that!”</p>
<p>Abbie groaned. “Fine, I mean. It’s great that you’re hanging around us now Marcus, but please stop stripping my friend with your eyes,” she rolled her eyes as she said it and Ginny burst out laughing.</p>
<p>She looked back at Marcus who looked confused and insulted, “That’s Abbie-speak for ‘Welcome to the group, I’m so happy you were able to join us for lunch!’” she sighed, putting on her best Disney Princess voice. </p>
<p>Ginny reached over to ruffle Abbie’s hair and got a piece of orange skin thrown at her in response. She couldn’t believe how great it felt to hang out with her dumb friends and Marcus all together. She snuck another glance at him and saw him smiling at her fondly. </p>
<p>“Well, well, well,” she heard coming from behind her and she groaned, knowing that she was about to regret everything that had led to this moment, “What do we have here!” She didn’t even need to turn around to see Hunter’s dramatic-ass face walking up to them.</p>
<p>She looked at Marcus and whispered to him, “You chose to sit here. You did this to us!” and was surprised to see him desperately trying to hold back a laugh. </p>
<p>“Marcus Baker! The prodigal son! Light of my life! Have you finally returned to us, my boy?” </p>
<p>Ginny was confused. Did Marcus and Hunter not hate each other?</p>
<p>“Easy, tiger,” she heard Preston mutter from behind her as he and Hunter joined them at the table.</p>
<p>“I think I was drugged and forced to come here against my will,” was Marcus’ witty reply. Was he.. Bantering with Hunter? After all his angst and drama? </p>
<p>“Glad to see you, man,” Hunter clapped him on the shoulder, big smile on his face, “It’s been a while.” </p>
<p>Ginny was looking around, confused as fuck, and Marcus was refusing to make eye contact. Very suspicious. What was going on there?! Abbie and Nora were giggling at the look on her face, and Maxine was staring longingly at Sophie Sanchez who had just walked into the room. Useless! </p>
<p>She finished her lunch and left the table, purposely leaving Marcus sitting in the middle of the Bro Squad with a smug smile. He’d find her eventually, and he better be ready to explain what that was all about. </p>
<p>Smiling as she waited for him to approach her locker, Ginny couldn’t help but admire the way Marcus stalked towards her once she was in his sights. His eyes were promising her a world of pain and it sent a sinful shudder throughout her body. Mmmm that wasn’t a good sign.</p>
<p>“Leaving me alone with your awful friends wasn’t a very kind thing to do, Ginny,” he growled into her ear when he reached to her locker. One hand was resting above his head on her locker and the other was crushing her waist to him. </p>
<p>“Mmmm you didn’t seem to mind it that much when your besties arrived at the table,” she breathed back into his ear, pressing her body dangerously against him. “It was nice, seeing you getting along with my friends,” she continued, trying to make her voice sound normal but ending up letting out a moan as he nibbled the skin on her neck.</p>
<p>This friends thing was definitely not going well. She wanted him, right here, in the middle of the hallway, and she honestly couldn’t find a reason to stop this from happening. Apart from, obviously, getting caught by a crowd of people.</p>
<p>“Library?” she whispered, hoping that he would understand her plea to get out of such a public space to find somewhere they could be more alone. </p>
<p>“Ginny…” he begged, for what, she didn’t know, but he sounded so desperate. “Please. Please don’t start this if…”</p>
<p>She pulled back and looked into his eyes. “We can just talk, if you want,” she offered, breathing heavily, her chest heaving. She didn’t know what they could talk about to distract her from the fact that she felt like her body was on fire, but they could try.</p>
<p>“I… Come on,” he ordered, grabbing her hand. They ended up at the old abandoned bike shed, which wasn’t a super romantic place, but it would give them somewhere to talk in private, she supposed.</p>
<p>He leaned against the wall and brought her into his arms, holding her against him and stroking the back of her neck. Ginny’s eyes closed as she leaned into his touch, loving the light pressure he was applying there. She really felt like a cat getting her scritchles and it made her sigh in pleasure, a big smile on her face.</p>
<p>Marcus’ eyes were drawn to her lips and he so desperately wanted to pull her forward and claim her completely. He needed to be sure that that wouldn’t scare her off though. He was terrified of losing what they had and he didn’t want to push her beyond her limits.</p>
<p>“Mmm it’s been nice, being with you today,” she practically purred as she opened her eyes to look up at him.</p>
<p>“Ginny, I… I need to know that I won’t scare you away if we start something. I can’t lose you,” he looked like he was in pain. Ginny didn’t want to cause him pain. She frowned as she looked up and reached up to hold onto his hand, stopping him from rubbing her neck.</p>
<p>“Marcus, I can’t - I can’t promise that this is going to last forever,” she started, concerned that she shouldn’t start something with him knowing that he would have to accept the loss of their relationship when she had to move. She hadn’t ever had to worry about this before. “My family, we never stick around. I don’t want you to--”</p>
<p>“No, I don’t care if you have to move, if I’ll still be able to talk to you, see your smile. I mean, I don’t want you to change your mind, shut me out,” he pleaded, looking at her. </p>
<p>The small, evil part of her wanted to remind him that she wasn’t the one who went back to her ex as soon as things got hard. She ignored that asshole. </p>
<p>“I’m not giving you blanket permission to hurt me and treat me like shit, Marcus Baker.” She responded with a raised eyebrow.</p>
<p>She almost giggled at the shocked look on his face. “I wouldn’t! No! If I did anything to hurt you, I wouldn’t want you to come within a mile of me, Ginny.”</p>
<p>“Then what do you have to worry about? If you’re not going to hurt me, I’m not going anywhere,” she smiled up at him.</p>
<p>It couldn’t be that simple, could it?</p>
<p>“So… you won’t panic and run away if I tell you how much I’ve wanted you all day?” he asked, moving closer to her, pressing their foreheads together. Ginny squeezed her thighs together and whimpered softly, growing impatient now that she had accepted her feelings for him. She wanted him now! But he was taking his time, teasing her, playing with her.</p>
<p>He tilted her chin up, forcing her to look at him as he stared at her expectantly. He needed her to say it?</p>
<p>“No, please. I won’t… I won’t run,” she forced out, leaning up to him, desperate to stop this conversation by pressing their lips together.</p>
<p>He turned away from her slightly, pressing his lips up against her ear, groaning, “What if I told you how much I’ve been thinking about getting on my knees and tasting you, ever since you did the same to me,” he whispered as he pressed his fingers right onto her clit over her pants.</p>
<p>Pleasure erupted through Ginny, finally, and she keened, pushing her hips towards him. “Fuck, Marcus, please. Pleasepleaseplease I need you. You won’t scare me away-” ah! she gasped when he rubbed against her more firmly.  </p>
<p>He groaned again when he felt how wet she was, even through her clothes. She was practically begging him, screaming at him to fuck her, right here outside where anyone could wander in to find them. He wanted to stretch it out more, make sure she was really certain, but he couldn’t deny her anymore.</p>
<p>He crushed her lips to his, finally feeling whole again now that he had her completely. He didn’t think he could ever stop kissing her once he started. He moaned into her mouth, pulling her body as close to his as it could get. </p>
<p>Ginny could do this forever. Kissing Marcus Baker felt as natural as breathing. The way his hands roamed her body, leaving little fires burning wherever his skin touched hers… </p>
<p>She pulled back to look at him but he followed her lips, keeping them connected. She smiled into the kiss and pulled him into her by his shirt. His hands moved down to her ass cheeks and he ground into her, pulling her against his hard cock. He lifted her and she wrapped her legs around his waist, moaning at the new sensation.</p>
<p>“Mmmm fuck, Marcus. Please. Need you,” she gasped, as he kissed his way down her chest, leaving little nips along her neck and chest. “Uhhhng, Marcus. Please. Stop teasing.”</p>
<p>“Ginny, we can’t… not here” he groaned into her chest, still grinding on her. </p>
<p>“Mmm are you sure? You wanna stop right now and get ready to go to class?” she teased as she ran her fingers through his hair. She dug her fingers in and pulled hard, bringing his lips back up to hers in a rough kiss. She pulled back from the kiss and smiled teasingly at the dopey look on his face. </p>
<p>“Are you really so desperate for my cock, Miller? You want me right here, in this dirty shed?” he growled when she held him back, stopping him from kissing her again. Her smile grew even wider as he ground against her, clearly just as desperate for her as she was for him.</p>
<p>“Hmmm, unng, maybe you’re right, Marcus. Maybe.. ah- you should uh - stop grinding your cock into me and - mmmm-  put me down,” she suggested in a whisper, leaning in to kiss him but pulling away at the last second.</p>
<p> “We don’t want to fuck each other in this dirty, - mmm - filthy place, far away from everyone at school. I can’t take - ah!- your cock, right here, right now, begging you to go faster, to make me - uhhh - come all over you, before we pull on our pants and head to last period.,” she continued, groaning every time he hit her right in the spot that makes her see stars.</p>
<p>She felt like he was going to push her over the edge, right here, without removing a single article of clothing. “I - hah! - oh, I can’t imagine walking into my next class with your come - mmm- dripping down my legs. Oh! Marcus, I’m--” she closed her eyes and threw her head back, falling into the chasm of pleasure that she only felt when she was with this boy. This ridiculous, sensitive, caring boy. She gasped his name, over and over, as wave after wave of pleasure crashed over her. </p>
<p>When she finally opened her eyes, they were both panting and staring into each others’ eyes. Ginny felt great after coming once, but she was still feeling jittery and on edge. She rolled her hips against Marcus and pouted, not yet fully satisfied.</p>
<p>Marcus smiled against her lips, “Really, Miller? You still need more after that?” he teased, giving her little pecks on her lips in between his words. “You’re insatiable,” he whispered in mock horror.</p>
<p>“Hmmm, maybe I should go find someone else to scratch my itch, then?” She teased back, pulling away as though she were ready to go find someone else right away. She unwrapped her legs from around his waist, really trying to convincingly get away from him.</p>
<p>He grabbed onto her arm and pulled her back into him, pushing her up against the wall and leaning into her. “Oh, no you don’t.” He muttered, stroking her face and smiling down at her, “You’re mine. I’ll be the one satisfying you from now on. Anytime you need it.”</p>
<p>Ginny pouted up at him, “Awww, poor baby. You’re really taking one for the team, aren’t you?” she asked with a grin.</p>
<p>“I’ll take anything for you,” he replied as he leaned in to kiss her. Unfortunately, Ginny burst out laughing just before he could reach her lips. </p>
<p>“Sorry,” she wheezed through her laughter, “No, really. That was so romantic! Please tell me more about all the things you’d take for me,” she laughed, holding her sides to try to slow the laughter.</p>
<p>He lifted her up, holding her between himself and the wall. She wrapped her legs around his waist and her breath hitched. He leaned in and pressed another kiss to her lips. “I’d take your smile, every day for the rest of my life,” he started, kissing the shape of a smile across her lips and cheeks. </p>
<p>Ginny blushed and couldn’t hide the smile appearing on her face.</p>
<p>“I’d take your hands,” he said, holding onto her left and bringing it up to his lips, staring deeply into her eyes the entire time. Ginny cleared her throat, trying to remember how to breathe. She definitely wasn’t laughing anymore.</p>
<p>“I’d take your hair,” he dug his fingers in her hair, pulling hard, swallowing her moan with a kiss. The pressure of his hand tightening in her hair went straight to her core, she could feel her hips trying to rotate into his to relieve some of the tension.</p>
<p>“I’d take your cute little ears,” he continued, kissing his way up her neck and biting down on her ear lobe. Ginny had no idea what he was doing, but it was making her feel hot and breathless and needy, as though she hadn’t come just five minutes ago. She needed more, so much more. She wanted all of him, she needed him inside her.</p>
<p>“Marcus…” she breathed, struggling to believe that he could really make her feel this way with a few kisses and a few words. Her knickers were ruined. </p>
<p>“Please, Marcus, I can’t go to class like this,” she begged, not sure what exactly she wanted from him, but knowing that he was the only person who could make it better.</p>
<p>“Mmm but Ginny, I haven’t told you all the things I’d take for you,” he claimed innocently as he stroked her cheek.</p>
<p>“Who would have guessed that Marcus Baker was a little tease?” she grumbled to herself, irritated that he wouldn’t just give her what she wanted. </p>
<p>“Don’t be mad,” he whispered into her ear, “I just don’t want our first time together again to be rushed,” he added with a little nip to her neck. That wasn’t helping, Marcus. “I want to be able to take my time with you, explore every part of you. I want you to wake up in the morning, knowing that I’m going to have all of you. I want you to ache for me,” he groaned and pressed against her.</p>
<p>He took a deep breath, closing his eyes and stepping back. He gently lowered Ginny to the ground, then ran his fingers through his hair, looking stressed. What’s going on? Ginny hadn’t realised that he was being serious until she felt the cold touch of his absence.</p>
<p>“I’m serious, Ginny. Last time was…” He started pacing in front of her and Ginny had to work hard to focus on what he was saying rather than the heat coursing through her body. “It wasn’t something I expected to happen. I want our next time to be special. I want you to know how special you are to me. I don’t want it to be something quick and rushed because we’re too horny to control ourselves.”</p>
<p>Special? Too horny to control themselves? What kind of sex-shaming bullshit was he trying to pull here?</p>
<p>Ginny cleared her throat and started to fix her clothes, feeling oddly embarrassed by her reaction to him. She hadn’t realised that there was anything wrong with being aroused by someone she cared deeply for, but she supposed they hadn’t really been so emotionally connected for a while. She had liked feeling out of control around him; she had liked knowing that she could trust him to let her explore her sexuality without judgement.</p>
<p>However, at this moment, she was feeling pretty judged. For allowing him to climb into her room and take her virginity, without all the build up, without a relationship. She had just been horny and incredibly attracted to him, and she had acted on those feelings. Then spiralled into an awful panic after he left.</p>
<p>Ginny took a deep breath and picked up her bag, feeling like she had been drenched with cold water. Well, she supposed that was one way to kill the mood so she could be ready for class. </p>
<p>She plastered a smile on her face and suggested they head to their next class, not wanting to talk about this anymore. The walk back to the school building was silent, and Ginny felt pretty awkward. She drifted into her own thoughts, worried that she might be overreacting to what he said.</p>
<p>To her, it felt like he was calling her a slut. That she was treating herself in a way that wasn’t “special” because she wanted to be open and ready to be… sexual with him. She wasn’t behaving this way around anyone else, not that she needed to justify her feelings or behaviour. It was just, she thought he would have felt the same way.</p>
<p>Ginny wrapped her arms protectively around her torso and tried to think of something else, anything else. All she could think of was the look of shock on his face when she got on her knees for him that time at work though. Had he been horrified by how forward she was? She couldn’t remember him saying much about it afterwards. She was really starting to second guess everything now.</p>
<p>She didn’t want to feel like she had to keep up appearances and act the right way all the time. She wanted to be able to be free to wonder and explore her desires with the person she chose. </p>
<p>Her afternoon lessons passed by in a blur. She made notes and tried to listen to what her teachers were saying, but she was constantly aware of the feelings of shame and embarrassment lurking at the back of her mind. </p>
<p>Girls were always forced to try to walk the tightrope, balancing reservedness and openness in a way that would be appealing to society. There was no winning. Trying to be sensible and avoid too much attention from the opposite sex? Boring prude. Trying to be open and unashamed about having sexual urges? Depraved slut. Ginny didn’t want to have to worry about being perfect all the time. She just wanted to be. </p>
<p>Not fully understanding how to explain what she was thinking and feeling, or knowing who she could talk to without making the whole thing worse, Ginny tried to just put the matter behind her. Marcus probably wasn’t the person for her to explore all her most depraved desires with at the moment. That was alright. She still cared deeply for him. He would definitely be worth the wait, but she probably needed to make sure they were on the same page.</p>
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<a name="section0033"><h2>33. Chapter 33</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>You can ignore this message and go straight to the story, it's just a message about my personal insanity. TL;DR - chapters are going to be shorter and more frequently uploaded now.</p><p>So, you may have noticed that my chapters are usually like... super long. That's because I do write a lot during the week, but I don't have time to reread and edit and obsess over it until the weekend. So, like... I spend hours at the weekend putting them all together into one mammoth chapter because I hate each little bit on its own. I'm a perfectionist (anxiety). It's really making my life difficult.</p><p>Soooooooo, long story short. I'm going to attempt to not over analyse this before I post it. My experiment this week will be: write short chapters and upload them during the week. And not spend hours staring at them, obsessing over every little mistake. They're not going to be great, and they might not necessarily push the story along, but I need to just... stop being weird about it. Thanks for reading my short story about why anxiety disorders are so fun.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Ginny??” she picked up the phone and heard her mother’s frantic cries on the other end. What had happened?</p><p>“Mom? What’s wrong? Is everything okay?” She responded, starting to feel panic rising within her.</p><p>“I’m in the hospital with Austin. He was attacked by another kid at school, during class time! He’s waiting to get stitches now. He hasn’t said a word since I arrived…” </p><p>She knew her mom was still talking, but it had been difficult for Ginny to hear anything after the words “hospital” and “Austin”. He had tried to warn them, he had spoken to them about how he feared going to school. How the other kids were mean to him and ostracised him constantly. She had thought that he would have been alright after she dropped him off in the morning.</p><p>She had been such a fucking idiot.</p><p>She should have let her mom go to the school and talk to them about her worries about Austin being bullied, but she thought she could smooth things over with all her teenage fucking wisdom.</p><p>And now her brother was in the hospital.</p><p>Stitches. Where was he getting stitches? Would he be alright? She needed to get to him. Right now.</p><p>“Mom, I’m on my way. I’ll get an Uber to the hospital,” she managed to gasp out before hanging up the phone. </p><p>People.</p><p>There were too many people around and she couldn’t think, couldn’t see, couldn’t concentrate. She needed to get away, quickly. </p><p>Her mom had called her right as she left the school building with a rush of other students escaping for the day. Now, she was feeling trapped by the bodies all around her. </p><p>Her feet led her to the bike shed before she even realised where she was heading.</p><p>She needed to cry it all out before heading to see Austin. She didn’t want to break down in front of him and make him feel more worried than he already was.</p><p>No. She needed to get there first and cry later. </p><p>She looked down at her phone.</p><p>Why?</p><p>Oh, yes. Uber. To the hospital. To make sure her brother was alright after he was attacked by the bullies in his school.</p><p>Opening the app, she requested a driver to take her to the hospital and was relieved to see that he would be arriving in 2-5 minutes. </p><p>Taking a shaky breath to try to calm herself, Ginny started walking back to the school’s car park. </p><p>“Ginny?” she heard from the path ahead, and cursed her timing. Hastily wiping her eyes, - when had she started crying? - Ginny plastered a smile on her face, not willing to talk about this right now.</p><p>“Hey! Sorry, I had to rush off. I’m heading to meet my mom and Austin now,” she explained, trying to sound as casual as possible.</p><p>She started walking towards him on the path, needing to get to the car park before the driver arrived. Marcus was easily able to keep up with her pace.</p><p>“I just wanted to make sure things were cool with us? You seemed… distant,” he ventured, shooting worried glances her way. </p><p>“Yeah, we’re fine. Honest. I’ve got some stuff on my mind, but it’s nothing you need to worry about, I promise. I really have to go now, though! I’ll talk to you later?” she responded as she saw the Uber driver pull up to the pickup area. </p><p>They made it to the hospital in record time, and Ginny was soon being enveloped in a frantic hug from her mom. The two women cried as they held each other, Ginny squeezing tight and trying to give her mom all the strength and support she could.</p><p>“What do you know about what happened?” she asked when they separated.</p><p>“They were doing quiet afternoon tasks, the teacher was helping a kid on the other side of the classroom and that little monster walked up to Austin’s table, said some truly horrible things, and then stabbed him with a pencil!” she cried out, wiping her eyes with a tissue. </p><p>“And the teacher was in the classroom this entire time? She didn’t realise that her kids were getting out of their seats instead of completing their afternoon activities? What the fuck!?” Ginny had assumed that the teacher left the class unsupervised to deal with some kind of emergency, allowing the incident to take place. But the woman had been in the room the entire time and just had no idea what was going on with her students?</p><p>How was this person trusted to keep these children safe and educated if she couldn’t even stop them from stabbing each other under her supervision?</p><p>“The incident is still being investigated, so we don’t really know exactly what happened. That’s all I could get out of the little idiot on the phone.” Georgia muttered, furious that her child had been attacked when he was supposed to be safe in his classroom.</p><p>“I knew. From the first day, I knew that this little shit had been picking on Austin. I should have said something sooner,” she growled under her breath, wiping the tears that were flowing freely down her face. </p><p> “Mom! Mom, look! I got a bandage with Spiderman on it!” Austin came bounding out of the hospital room with his doctor following soon after. </p><p>Georgia rushed to wrap him in a hug, kissing him on his head. “That’s great, baby! Does it hurt?” she asked, running her hands over his face and arms to prove to herself that he was alright, he was safe.</p><p>“No! I feel great! Can we get some ice cream on the way home?” he asked, sounding more chipper than he had any right to.</p><p>“Of course, baby. Momma just needs to talk to the doctor real quick. Stay with Ginny,” she ordered absentmindedly as she rushed to hear what the doctor had to say about her son’s health.</p><p>Austin went to sit next to his sister, ready to tell her all about his day at school, when he noticed that she was sitting there crying and trying to hide it from him. </p><p>He put his hand on her shoulder, and addressed her gently, “It’s okay Ginny. What’s wrong? Don’t be sad!” He didn’t like seeing her sad. </p><p>“I’m so sorry, Austin. I thought you might be okay if you started getting on with the kids in the class and playing with them this morning,” she sniffled, trying not to weep all over her baby brother. </p><p>“Oh. I’m sorry,” Austin replied in a small, quiet voice. “Please don’t be sad because of me, Ginny,” he begged.</p><p>Ginny had to bite her lip and pull him into a tight squeeze to stop herself from bawling at the pathetic sound of his little voice as he tried to be brave for her. She didn’t know how, but she was going to find a way to make this right.</p>
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<a name="section0034"><h2>34. Chapter 34</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Ginny and Georgia were exhausted when they got home, but Austin seemed to be filled with boundless energy. Georgia promised to order Chinese as soon as they got home but Ginny was ready to go straight to bed. </p><p>When she saw Marcus sitting outside their front door, she just wanted to cry. She was too tired for this. Like way, way too tired. She needed to curl up in bed and sleep. She didn’t want to deal with the confusing feelings today.</p><p>Luckily, it seemed as though he had come to check on Austin, and he didn’t seem too focused on her. After Austin enthusiastically ran to greet him, Ginny gave him a smile as she headed inside, ready for a shower and bedtime. It was barely 7pm, but she just needed to turn off her brain for the rest of the day. </p><p>-</p><p>Ginny felt marginally better after her hot shower. She wasn’t one of those people who thought a shower could fix everything, but it did feel great to stand under the stream of hot water, letting it wash away the stress of the day. It was also a fantastic place to cry silently, allowing the steamy water to hide her tears.</p><p>She needed to talk to her mom about what they could do about Austin. Ginny was not happy for him to go back to that school if the kids were allowed to wreak havoc in the classroom. She didn’t know what the consequences for that awful bully’s behaviour would be, but she had a feeling she wouldn’t be happy with anything less than him being sent somewhere far away from her little brother.</p><p>Lost in her thoughts, she didn’t notice a presence in her room, sitting on her bed and reading her very old, worn copy of Wuthering Heights. </p><p>“Ummm.. This is not okay,” she said, concerned that Marcus Baker had managed to break into her room yet again without her knowledge or consent.</p><p>“I thought we talked about this, Marcus. You can’t just break into my room whenever you feel like it,” she pursed her lips, unimpressed.</p><p>That seemed to shock him back into some kind of normality. His eyes widened as he took in the fact that all she was wearing was a towel, because, you know, she had just had a shower and was ready to change in the privacy of her own bedroom.</p><p>“Ginny, I--”</p><p>“Does my mom know you’re here?” She wouldn’t put it past Georgia to send her new bestie up to check on her poor, distressed daughter. Based on the sheepish, uncomfortable look on Marcus’ face, she could guess that that wasn’t the case this time.</p><p>He stood up from her bed and placed her book back on the night stand, rubbing the back of his neck. “Not quite… No. I just. I’ve felt you pulling away since… lunch time. I don’t know what I did wrong, but I want to fix it. Please.” </p><p>Ginny sighed, feeling way too tired and overwhelmed to have this conversation right now. It was pretty low on her list of priorities if she was completely honest.</p><p>“I…” she started off hesitantly, not wanting to outright lie to the boy, but also not wanting to prolong this conversation. “Ugh, I’m sorry, Marcus. I’m just, I’m so tired, I can barely think straight,” she answered honestly, sitting heavily on her bed.</p><p>He moved awkwardly on the spot, not able to decide if he should try to comfort her or leave her in privacy. “Do you want me to… go?” he inquired, hesitantly. </p><p>He didn’t want to leave her. He wanted to wrap his arms  around her and promise that everything would be okay. Unfortunately, this wasn’t about him, and his wants and needs. This was about her. He’d do anything for the girl sitting in front of him.</p><p>She sighed, again, and yawned, holding her towel protectively to her chest as she did. “Um.. I don’t know. I can’t hold much of a conversation in this state..” she started.</p><p>“We don’t have to talk!” he rushed out, desperately trying to find a reason for him to stay in her presence just a little longer. “I can just… hold you. Help you to fall asleep. I want to be near you,” he explained quietly, a blush appearing on his face.</p><p>Ginny looked at him skeptically. </p><p>At her bemused expression, he stepped forward, determined to prove his sincerity. “Really! No funny business,” he drifted off, eyes darting down to her chest then back up to her eyes. He cleared his throat and tried to avoid looking… there. Looking anywhere near her was dangerous, when he knew there was just one piece of cloth between him and…</p><p>Ginny smiled knowingly at him, able to guess where his thoughts were heading. The smile faded as she remembered their conversation earlier, and she curled in on herself, uncomfortable with the idea of being so open with him at the moment.  </p><p>She tightened her grip on the towel.</p><p>“Marcus, I just… After what you said today, I have some things I need to process, and my brain is too full right now. I will talk to you, at some point. I just can’t. Not tonight,” she sighed, feeling uncomfortable around him for the first time since she had known him. </p><p>It wasn’t because he had wanted to take things slow; she could understand that after what they had been through before. She just… didn’t like the feeling of her sexuality being judged by the only person she felt comfortable sharing it with. But - she didn’t know how to express that. She didn’t know if it was fair to ask that. Until she knew what she wanted from him, she didn’t feel comfortable around him anymore.</p>
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<a name="section0035"><h2>35. Chapter 35</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Ginny didn’t look up at him, not wanting to see the look of hurt on his face. She just needed him to leave. </p><p>He sat down gently on the bed next to her, not saying anything for a while. Ginny still didn’t want to move or acknowledge his presence, but she was starting to feel cold. She wanted to put her PJs on and lie in bed. Marcus flopped back on her bed, lying on his back facing the ceiling. Dickhead. </p><p>“Damnit, Marcus, I just want to change and go to sleep! Will you please leave so I can change?” she whined, too sleepy to even try to sound angry.</p><p>She glanced at his face only to see an amused smirk. “Well,” he said, casually placing his hands behind his head, “I’m not stopping you.” He closed his eyes but he couldn’t wipe the dumb grin from his face. Ginny gave him a look filled with pure venom. </p><p>“Marcus.” she gritted out, not wanting to play this stupid game with him.</p><p>“Really, I promise I won’t look for… 5 minutes,” he smirked, placing one of his hands over his eyes. </p><p>“Marcus!” she cried, smacking him irritably on the arm.</p><p>“Ginny, I… I don’t want you on your own when you’re feeling like this,” he responded quietly, all traces of his smile disappearing.</p><p>“Feeling what? Tired? Ready to sleep on my own in the privacy of my own room?” she snarked and rolled her eyes, trying to avoid any complicated conversations.</p><p>Marcus sighed, sat up, and looked at her. Really looked at her. She didn’t even need to look at him to know that he was staring into her. She could feel his gaze on her, taking in every aspect of her body language. Ginny wanted to curl further into herself but she knew that wouldn’t really help her ‘I’m fine, please leave’ argument.</p><p>His hand gently stroked the skin between her neck and her shoulder. Ginny tried her best to control the urge to shiver under his touch, however she couldn’t ignore the feeling of pleasure she got from his light strokes. </p><p>“Stuck in your head,” he whispered. “Vulnerable. I don’t want you overthinking this until you find a reason to push me away, Ginny.” He leaned down to place a gentle kiss on her shoulder and she closed her eyes, leaning into it.</p><p>She shook him off and stood up, making sure to hold the towel up to herself.   </p><p>“I know you’re trying to help, and I really appreciate that. I do--”</p><p>“Please. Tell me what I did wrong. I don’t want to hurt you. What happened?” </p><p>Realising that this boy wasn’t giving up for the night, Ginny gestured for him to turn around so she could get changed. If she was having this conversation, she would be comfortable and warm. Even though he was facing the opposite direction, Ginny still tried to stealthily put on her PJs with the towel covering all her bits. She felt like she was in a swimming changing room.</p><p>She crawled into bed to lie under the covers once she had her clothes on. </p><p>“I felt like you were judging me. Today. When you said that last time wasn’t… special.” Her voice came out sounding much more vulnerable and sad than she intended to. God, it sounded way more pathetic when she said it out loud. Cringe.</p><p>She changed her mind, this wasn’t happening. “No! Never mind. I can’t talk about this now. Please, don’t make me talk about this,” she instantly regretted opening her mouth at all. Ever. She hid her head under the covers and hoped that he would have the decency to just leave her now that she had thoroughly embarrassed herself.</p><p>Marcus crawled up to where she was lying in bed and slowly, gently pulled the covers down so he could see her face. He smiled at her. A small, sad smile.</p><p>“Ginny, look at me. Please,” he requested, quietly. She slowly opened her eyes, looking absolutely adorable. He could see the fear of rejection and humiliation just swimming in her expression. What did she think he was going to say?</p><p>“I need you to understand something really, incredibly important right now. Okay?” he tried to make his voice sound as serious as possible when he continued.</p><p>“I am an idiot. A complete, total idiot.” </p><p>Ginny graced him with a small smile, pleased that he was aware of what an idiot he could be sometimes.</p><p>“Every minute I’ve had with you has been special. Incredible. Enchanting. We’ve done things I wouldn’t even dream of doing without knowing you. I want to do so much more with you. Always. Every day. Believe me. It felt so wrong and unnatural to stop what we were doing today,” he sighed. </p><p>“I just… didn’t want you to think I was only with you because of the sex stuff. I mean, I love that stuff, and you’re,” he closed his eyes and groaned, swallowing hard, trying not to forget what he was trying to say as he thought about their time together, “You’re incredible. I’ve spent so many nights replaying that night, when we first,” he cleared his throat, “When we were together, that first time.”</p><p>“What do you mean?” she asked, hesitantly.</p><p>“God, Ginny, do I really have to say it?” he asked, blushing. </p><p>“I mean, I’ve been thinking about you every night while I jerk off. I come with your name on my lips, just thinking about you on your knees in front of me. I’ve been imagining what you’d sound like while I licked you, whether you’d moan or scream with my head between your legs. I’m--” he groaned, not realising that he had been lying on top of her and slowly grinding against her as he described everything he wanted to do to her. He stopped himself immediately and moved away from the temptation.</p><p>“I feel like all I ever think about when I see you, is how desperate I am for us to be alone, in bed, like this. When I’m not with you, all I want to do is see you smiling and happy. I want to talk to you and hear what your day has been like. Which books you’re reading. I want to know every part of you, your thoughts and feelings. I was scared that you only wanted the sex, that you didn’t know how much I crave you. All of you. Not just your body, but your mind, your heart. Everything. I want everything with you, Ginny. That’s what I wanted to say, earlier.”</p><p>“Marcus…” she started, but he was on a role and couldn’t be stopped.</p><p>“No. I know you don’t want to hear it or you don’t believe it or whatever, Ginny, but I love--”</p><p>Ginny cut him off, not because she didn’t believe him, but because she was overwhelmed by the possibility that he might actually mean it. She had no idea how or why, but this boy really seemed to think he was in love with her. And Ginny was terrified because it really didn’t seem like such a ridiculous idea to her anymore.</p><p>So she reached up and kissed him. She crushed their lips together, reaching up with her hands to hold his face to her, not allowing him to break away to say anything else for a while.</p>
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<a name="section0036"><h2>36. Chapter 36</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Um, please stop leaving such lovely comments. The phrase "flattery will get you nowhere" just does not compute for me. Flattery is the easiest way to get me to put out ... (more chapters, jeez, get your minds out of the gutter!)</p><p>Seriously, though. Thank you.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>When they finally pulled apart, Ginny was starting to feel a bit clearer about her feelings. She sat up and they arranged themselves on the bed so she could rest her head on his shoulder while he wrapped his arm around her. It felt natural. Comfortable.</p><p>“I’m sorry I thought you were slut-shaming me,” she admitted quietly, “It’s probably because I feel embarrassed about what we’ve been doing on some level. Like, I knew it was wrong. I knew you were with Padma, and it was like a dirty little secret. We didn’t go out together or spend time with each other in public.” </p><p>She laughed, self-deprecatingly, and continued, “I guess I was just really excited that we were finally acknowledging each other in public today and I took it a bit far. I don’t know. I just don’t feel great about it, I guess.” </p><p>Talking about this wasn’t making her feel better at all. She felt like she was just rambling on about nothing and everything all at once. There was nothing she wanted to gain from this conversation. Nothing that would make her feel better.</p><p>Marcus didn’t respond for a while. Ginny didn’t know what to think about that. They were always so serious together. She couldn’t remember the last time they had had fun without it being related to sex. Did they even enjoy spending time together? </p><p>Eventually, he responded, “I don’t want you to feel that way.” She silently agreed. She didn’t want to feel that way either.</p><p>Ginny turned her head up to face him, so she could see his reaction to her next question. “Does this feel good to you? This intensity? The ups and downs? Have you actually felt good at all since we started… whatever this is between us?” </p><p>She didn’t know what she expected from him. Maybe for him to immediately respond confirming that they were great together and he had so much fun with her. </p><p>He stared ahead, unmoving. Ginny wasn’t even sure he had heard her question; he hadn’t reacted at all. She put her head back down to rest on his chest, listening to the soothing sound of his steady heart beat. Her eyes closed of their own accord, feeling calmed by the feeling of this chest rising and falling with his breaths.</p><p>His voice was a quiet rumble, not disturbing her, but loud enough for her to hear him clearly. “I don’t ever expect to be happy.” His voice had a faraway quality and she knew he was thinking about everything he had been through in the past few years.</p><p>“I haven’t even considered the idea of happiness in… a really long time. It’s not a feeling that’s even on my radar. I’ve felt this hollow nothingness for so long. This monotonous drudgery, forcing me out of bed every day just to keep doing the same thing without any hope for things to be better, to be different.” </p><p>He sighed, forcefully, as though trying to expel these feelings out of himself. Ginny was getting better at listening to his struggles without having a hugely emotional reaction. She felt deeply for what he was going through, but she was no longer in floods of tears when he opened up to her.</p><p>She reached out to hold onto his hand while he continued, pressing it against her chest so he could feel her heart beat as well.</p><p>“I don’t know if I will ever be happy. I don’t know if we’ll ever have light-hearted, fun times. I barely even remember what it’s like to feel that way. I wish you could have been with Hunter, Ginny. Why couldn’t you have been with Hunter? I want that for you. I want you to have fun and be happy and enjoy being with the person you love. I don’t want to bring you down and burden you with all my shit. You deserve so much better. You see that, don’t you?” </p><p>His grip on her hand tightened. Ginny had no idea how to respond. That was a lot of information, but she knew that she wasn’t surprised by it. Deep down, she had known he was going through something terrible and that he wasn’t able to cope. She shouldn’t have been insensitive enough to ask about whether or not he was happy. She knew he wasn’t. The real question was: did she want to be involved with him, knowing what hard work it would be?</p><p>She smiled. There was no question really, she knew immediately that she wouldn’t want anything other than this person. Her person.</p><p>She wiggled down in the bed and pulled him down as well so they were lying, facing each other. She smiled, a mean little smile. </p><p>“You’re a dumbass!” she teased in a sing-song voice, and she let out a giggle at the shocked look on his face. “Yep! I said it. You. Are. SUCH. A dumbass. I mean, really, I should be used to it by now. I’ve been in love with you long enough to realise how truly terrible you are at understanding basic things. But WOWWW, Marcus. You’re really pulling out all the big surprises today, aren’t you?” </p><p>He looked so, completely nonplussed by her insulting little speech, she wanted to giggle again, but she had to keep going so that he would get the message through his thick, little skull.</p><p>“I know that you’ve been depressed, dumbass. I know why you’ve been depressed. This isn’t about that. I want to know if you want to do this. Really do this. You and me against the world. I want to know if this is something that makes you feel better about life or if you think this is something that’s making it worse for you. I’m not going to be a destructive force in your life.” She stared him down as she was talking, really making sure that he knew how serious she was.</p><p> “If you feel that being with me, and this emotional rollercoaster we’re on, is making your life worse, and harder to deal with, I’m not going to allow this to continue. I have to be strong enough for the both of us, and I’m happy to do that. I want you to be free,” she smiled at him and cupped his face. Okay, the tears were coming now. Fuck it, she had tried. This was really important to her and she was tired, so she was allowed to cry just this once.</p><p>“You’ve told me, multiple times, that you can’t handle the feelings. I didn’t understand what you meant before, but I think I get it now. It’s so much to deal with. You’ve already got so much going on and I am literally a little ball of insanity, just jumping to conclusions left and right, probably pushing you into a nervous breakdown with all the dumb misunderstandings we’ve had so far.” She smiled through the tears, and didn’t even try to wipe them away.</p><p>“I want you to forget about this insane idea of me having to be with Hunter romantically in order for me to have fun times with him. We have fun. There is nothing sexual there. That is literally the definition of friendship. I already have people in my life that I can have light-hearted fun times with. Do you understand that? I don’t need more light-hearted fun.</p><p>“I want this deep, messy, horrific thing that we have. I want to be able to let you know my awful, self-hating thoughts, and I want to be able to cry and scream with you when everything is too much. Do you think I can have any of these conversations with anyone but you? Do you think Happy Hunter has any idea about the absolute mess that my family is? I don’t give a fuck about fun.” </p><p>Her voice was starting to get a bit louder and she didn’t want him to think she was actually mad at him. She took a deep breath and tried to calm herself, trying to remember what was really important in this conversation.</p><p>“The only thing I care about right now, is whether this thing between us is damaging your wellbeing. So, when I ask about whether or not you think this thing is good, I don’t mean ‘Why aren’t you happy? Please, tell me more about who I should spend my time with!’ - I mean ‘Are you thinking about whether this relationship is having a positive or negative impact on you?’ And I really need you to be honest with me because I refuse to be a thing that causes you more pain.”  </p><p>She pursed her lips when she finished talking, realising that he hadn’t said anything to her and was still looking at her like she had grown 2 extra heads. She fidgeted a bit, uncomfortable with the silence, but determined to give him all the time he needed to think about whether this was healthy for him. Should she give him more time? Like, maybe a couple days to really think about it?</p><p>“You’re… you’re in love with me?” He breathed out, bringing his hand up to her face, taking it all in with his eyes.</p>
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<a name="section0037"><h2>37. Chapter 37</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Taken aback, Ginny shifted and tried to look around, not quite sure how that was the message he got from her little outburst. That definitely was not the message she was trying to put out there.</p><p>“No!” She responded quickly, refusing to allow the conversation to head down that path. “Can we focus on what I actually just said, please? Did you actually hear any of the words that left my mouth, Marcus? I’m serious about this!”</p><p>“No, yeah, I heard you.” He responded, still looking at her with a look of pure wonder on his face. “You said… you said you’ve been in love with me long enough to know how terrible I am. You’ve been… in love with me?” His brows were furrowed as though he couldn’t wrap his head around the idea.</p><p>“No. Marcus, don’t be distracted.” She stalled, not remembering that part of her speech at all. “I told you I don’t love you, remember? It doesn’t matter anyway! You need to think about whether or not we can be together without damaging your--”</p><p>“It matters, Ginny Miller,” he sat up with a grin and leaned over her. “You love me! You can’t take it back now! You admitted it out loud and I heard it and now I’ll know forever that you loooooove me.”</p><p>Ginny let out a frustrated huff. Ugh. This boy was the WORST.</p><p>She sat up and glared at him, crossing her arms over her chest.</p><p>“I do NOT love you,” she grumbled, annoyed that the conversation was going down this stupid hole.</p><p>“You love me sooooo much that you want to protect my well-being,” he sang out, grinning as he moved even closer to her. Ginny wanted to smack that stupid smile off his face. “You love me, and you want it to be you and me against the world, and you want to be with me aaaaaaallllll the time.”</p><p>She got up quickly from the bed and moved away from him, feeling panicked by her loss of control over the conversation and ready to lash out. She held up her hand so he wouldn’t come closer to her.</p><p>“Stop! Marcus, I don’t know what I said, okay? I don’t love you! Stop saying that I love you. I don’t! I won’t ever love you. I don’t trust you not to hurt me and run back to Padma at the next sign of trouble so I don’t love you, okay? It was probably just a slip of the tongue or a common phrase I used incorrectly or something. I don’t love you! So stop saying it. It’s not true!”</p><p>She hadn’t meant to scream repeatedly at him that she didn’t love him, but he needed to get the message. It might have been harsh, but she didn’t care. She DIDN’T love him. She didn’t.</p><p>When she heard him stand up and start to move closer to her, she expected to see the look of pain on his face and she was ready to revel in it. She wanted to be cruel and hurt him like he hurt her. Like he was always hurting her. This relationship was definitely not healthy. What if she couldn’t ever forgive him or move on? She had to let him go.</p><p>She didn’t expect him to move closer to her, still smiling brightly. She didn’t expect him to gently cup her face like she was the most precious thing in the world.</p><p>“It’s okay to be scared of your feelings, Ginny. Feelings are hard. I don’t need you to trust me right now. I’m going to earn your trust.” He tilted her head up so he could look deeply into her eyes and continued, “I have our whole lives to earn your trust and prove to you that I’ll never hurt you again,” he whispered firmly, but gently, trying to show her how determined he was about this.</p><p>“I love you, Ginny Miller. Even when you confuse me, and scare the hell out of me. I love you when you’re angry at me about some misunderstanding you’ve cooked up in your head. I love you when you’re so focused on my wellbeing that you completely ignore your own, and you need me to remind you that your wellbeing is important, too.” His voice, gentle and soothing as ever, screamed that he was telling the truth. Ginny wanted to hide, get away from these words that she just couldn’t accept - but she was trapped by Marcus’ steady, reassuring gaze.</p><p>He continued, unphased by her lack of reaction, “I love you when you’re self-conscious and can’t see how incredible you are, the way you light up any room just by being in it. It scares me, how much I love you. But you need to know that I’m not going anywhere. Okay? My feelings for you aren’t changing.”</p><p>His gaze took in every movement in her face. Every reaction to what he was saying. He could see the terror in her expression, that fear of being vulnerable. Ginny had closed her eyes when he talked about loving all her flaws, and a tear had trailed down her face. Marcus was sick of seeing her cry. He wanted her to smile, to be happy. </p><p>“I don’t need you to say you love me, Ginny. If it really scares you that much, I’ll pretend you never said it. I know that being with you makes everything better for me. I’m starting to care… about things. School and the future and being successful. I want to be someone you’d be proud to be with. I don’t need you to love me. I just need you to be in my life. Okay?” </p><p>Ginny nodded her head but couldn’t bring herself to say anything out loud. She envied him - how freely he was able to experience his feelings, unafraid to accept them. It was the uncertainty, the constant back and forth, that was stressing her out so much. Deep down, Ginny knew she knew how she felt; she had known it for a long time. Marcus now knew how she felt, even if he said he would pretend not to. What was stopping her from just admitting it? </p><p>Fear.</p><p>Shame.</p><p>Vulnerability.</p><p>She couldn’t let go of that control. She needed it - she was desperately clinging to any semblance of control - for this feeling to stay unspoken, even if they both knew the truth. </p><p>She loved Marcus Baker. She loved him with everything she had, and she would do anything to make his life better. And that terrified the absolute shit out of her.</p>
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<a name="section0038"><h2>38. Chapter 38</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The next morning, Ginny and Georgia woke up early, both of them struggling to get any restful sleep.</p><p>Georgia was blaming herself for being so preoccupied with her criminal past and sleeping with the mayor that she didn’t realise her son was in real physical danger at his school. If that little psycho had decided to go for a more vulnerable body part with that pencil… Her baby could have died, surrounded by strangers who had done nothin’ to make him feel more welcome at school.</p><p>She stewed, silently fuming as she prepared the pancakes for her kids. </p><p>Ginny heard her mom banging around in the kitchen and went down to investigate. When she saw enough flour, eggs, and sugar to make enough pancakes to feed an army, she felt morally obligated to save Austin from her mom’s substandard breakfast. </p><p>Ginny made the best pancakes. Fluffy, light, airy. Austin was going to have the best breakfast of his life before he had to face the school that had caused him so much horror. She couldn’t believe he was going back to that same class, with that same incompetent teacher who allowed him to get stabbed right under her nose. He had been targeted from the moment he arrived at school and the teacher had done nothing to stop it.</p><p>“Hey! Easy on the batter there,” she heard her mom yell, and realised she had been stirring it a bit too vigorously while worrying about Austin going to school.</p><p>“Sorry, mom. Got distracted thinking about…” Ginny looked over at her mom and saw her wincing. She was probably thinking about that too.</p><p>When Ginny spoke again, her voice was a worried whisper, “It’s just… He was in the classroom, you know? I always imagined bullying to happen in secret corners far away from any adult supervision, far away from any other children who could have stopped it. But they were right there. Right in front of the rest of his class.” She shared her fears while she continued to make her brother’s favourite pancakes. Georgia handed her a bag of chocolate chips and Ginny dumped the entire bag into the batter. Austin was getting ALL the chocolate chips he wanted today.</p><p>Ginny wiped her tears away and continued, needing to be open with her mom about everything she was thinking. “You can’t tell me that no one else in the classroom saw that kid walking up to Austin. That they didn’t hear the things he was saying to him. They could have alerted the teacher, but they didn’t. And now we’re sending him back to that place. He’s not safe and I don’t like being away from him when he’s not safe. I want to be right there, in the room with him. But I can’t…” </p><p>She had to put the bowl down because she was bawling at this point and her mom had pulled her into a tight hug.</p><p>“Honey, I know what you’re feelin. I’m feelin’ it too. If I had shared my concerns with the school earlier, maybe they could have kept an eye on it, maybe it would never have got to this stage…” Ginny knew her mom was crying, too. She hadn’t seen her mom cry, really truly cry, this much in years. The woman was a machine, holding herself together through some serious shit. Yet, when her kids were threatened, it was like she had no idea how to cope.</p><p>Ginny pulled away from the hug and grabbed both sides of her mom’s face, making sure that she was looking and listening. “Mom, you have to stop. That thinking isn’t going to help. We need to think about what we can do to make sure he’s safe going forward, okay?” </p><p>She looked into her mom’s eyes, making sure that the woman was really taking on board what she was saying.</p><p>“We didn’t know how serious this could become. It was unkind words for a long time and it just moved straight into weaponised violence from there. We could never have predicted this, do you hear me? It wasn’t possible.”</p><p>She waited until her mom was looking more confident in accepting that they weren’t psychic and couldn’t predict what happened, before she continued.</p><p>“Now, we know what he’s up against. We have the moral high ground, here. What do we want to get out of this? Do we get rid of the kid? Rally the town and get him expelled? Get rid of the teacher? Get Austin into a better class? A better school?” There were too many options, and Ginny needed Georgia to get her shit together so they could decide what they were going to do next because Ginny was terrified and she had no idea what to do!</p><p>Ginny let go of her mom’s face, feeling pretty sure that she had calmed down enough for them to come up with a game plan. She loved being part of the solution. It made her feel more in control, even though she ultimately knew that Georgia made all the decisions as the mom.</p><p>“Those are some good ideas, Peach, but I don’t think you’re thinking big enough,” Georgia responded with an evil grin on her face. Huh. So that’s where Ginny got it from. The evil genius look was pretty terrifying to behold, actually. </p><p>Georgia continued, “Whose kid was it that violently stabbed my innocent little baby?” starting to grandstand like she was a hot shot lawyer in session.</p><p>“Um, Cynthia’s?” Ginny responded, starting to get an idea of where her mom might have been going with this conversation.</p><p>“And isn’t she the one running for Mayor based on the idea of providing a future for our children? Prioritising their education, health, and safety?” My god, this woman was dramatic AF. “Why, she was ranting and raving about the fact that I am licensed to carry a firearm. Yet here she is, mother to a violent son who harmed another child, in a classroom no less, with something so innocuous as a pencil!” </p><p>Ginny didn’t like the political direction this was moving in. “How does that help Austin, at all? He’s still going to have to return to this place where he was violently attacked after weeks of emotional bullying. I’m sure that Zack kid wasn’t the only one being mean to him, he was probably part of a gang of little shits. Austin might still be in danger!”</p><p>Her mom could not possibly care more about Mayor fucking Paul than her son’s safety. That was some bullshit. Cynthia wasn’t the one who stabbed her brother. She didn’t care about ruining the woman’s mayoral campaign. </p><p>Ginny glared at her mom expectantly, waiting to hear how this would benefit Austin in any way.</p><p>“No, of course, sweetie. I know that. I want to protect Austin, don’t get me wrong.” She said soothingly, moving back to her daughter to show that she was still serious about this.</p><p>She continued, “The only way we can do that, though - really do that - is to make sure we can be in a position of power. We need to be able to affect real change. Getting him away from the kids who are currently bullying him will be easy. Priority number one. After that, though, we’re going to take this as far as it’ll go. No one messes with my boy and gets away with it. I won’t ever let him be put in this position again.” </p><p>Satisfied with her mom’s response, Ginny smiled and continued to put all her efforts into making the best pancakes that had ever existed. If she couldn’t be sure that Austin would be safe at school, she would at least make sure he was happy.</p><p>Her mom would deal with the safety.</p>
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<a name="section0039"><h2>39. Chapter 39</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Seeing Austin’s excited face when he ran down the stairs to see the giant stack of pancakes made all the effort totally worth it. Ginny wished she had prepared for the moment so she could catch it on camera - the pure glee on his face as he forgot about everything other than pancakes, the cute little happy dance he did as he approached the plate. Everything.</p><p>Ginny would get up at 5AM to make pancakes every day if that’s what would help him to get through this.</p><p>Conversation at the breakfast table was strained. Ginny and Georgia were still plagued by the guilt of knowing that Austin had been having a tough time at school but they had done nothing to stop it from escalating. Austin, oblivious to the tension, was busy enjoying his pancakes, thinking that this was the best surprise ever.</p><p>“This is the best surprise, ever!” he exclaimed after finishing his second plate of pancakes.</p><p>Ginny, who had been worrying that he would be too nervous about going back to school and wouldn’t have any appetite, was startled out of her glum thoughts by his exclamation. She plastered a smile onto her face and replied, “Any time you want pancakes, I will make them for you, okay? You just have to ask.”</p><p>Austin’s face fell, and Ginny worried that she had said the wrong thing - reminded him that he would have to return to school with the people who had hurt him and stood by watching him get hurt. Shit.</p><p>“You’re not… you’re not still sad about yesterday, are you?” He asked in a sad, little voice. Ginny had to force back her tears as she realised he had picked up on her worry. She didn’t want him to take on anything more than he could handle.</p><p>Unbidden, tears slipped down her face. Crying. Again. Seriously?</p><p>“I’m sorry, buddy. I know it’s not about me and that you’re the one really going through it. I’m sure you’ll be fine at school today, okay? No one is going to hurt you again. Ever.” she blabbed, trying to fix the mess she had created, but recoiling at the look of fear that suddenly appeared on her brother’s face.</p><p>Georgia finally chimed in - where the hell had she been when Ginny was spewing out all that word vomit? - “Sweetie, I think what Ginny was trying to say is that… We don’t want you to worry about going back to school today, okay? I’m going to be coming in to talk to the principal, and your class teacher. You will not be entering that school until I’m sure you’re safe. If you don’t feel ready to go back today, I’ll call your sitter and you can stay home having a fun day, alright? That little shit is not getting away with this violence.” she offered reassuringly, crouching down beside him and rubbing soothing circles on his back.</p><p>“I won’t… I won’t have to talk about it, will I?” he asked nervously. </p><p>Georgia smiled at him - a real smile. She ran her hand along the side of his face and cupped his cheek. “No, sweetie. I already know everything I need to know, I remember everything you’ve told me about this boy. You don’t have to relive anything.” </p><p>Austin let out a sigh and seemed to visibly get lighter with relief when his mom said that. He smiled and his attention returned to the stack of pancakes. He did a happy little dance as he piled some more onto his plate. </p><p>Ginny and Georgia shared a look of wonder while he was busy eating. The resilience of that kid would never cease to amaze them.</p>
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<a name="section0040"><h2>40. Chapter 40</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Ginny spent the day at school obsessively checking her phone whenever she could to make sure there weren’t any missed calls or messages from her mom about Austin. She had no idea how long her mom had been in the meeting with his principal, and the lack of information was freaking her out. What if they refused to do anything about the stabbing and just let that Zack kid run free, unchecked, able to torture her brother whenever he wanted to?</p><p>What if they somehow decided it was Austin’s fault and they tried to make things worse for him?</p><p>What if her mom stabbed the principal with a pencil and got arrested?</p><p>Ginny could definitely see that last one happening.</p><p>Marcus was being as patient and understanding as he could be, but he was trying to cheer her up. She didn’t want to be cheered up. She wanted to worry about her little brother until he wasn’t in danger anymore. He just didn’t understand.</p><p>Ginny had always been able to look out for her brother. She had always been there to guide him, protect him, cheer him up. Sure, kids at school had always found things that made them not want to play with Austin, but she had had the same experiences in school, too. They had bonded every day about how great it was to be at school without having to be involved in all the friendship group drama. </p><p>This time, though. Ginny had made friends. She didn’t have time to talk to him for hours every day after school anymore because she was spending time with these people, getting involved in her own friendship group drama. What if this had all happened because Austin was trying to make friends now that Ginny had made friends? Maybe he could have stayed safe from Zack’s notice if he had just quietly blended in.</p><p>No. Bullies are little shits and that wouldn’t have stopped him. </p><p>Ginny just hated feeling so powerless. With her mom so involved in the situation, Ginny would usually turn to her dad for advice. </p><p>She hadn’t spoken to her dad in a while, not quite sure she was ready to hear his brand of advice on some of her life choices. Her dad was great, and he was so positive, and always wanted her to experience life fully, like he did. She just thought he wouldn’t understand her fascination with Marcus, and how good it felt to help him express his emotions in a healthy way, because it wasn’t technically bringing her a lot of happy joy. So she just… didn’t talk to him as regularly.</p><p>She made a mental note to call him when she got home from school.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0041"><h2>41. Chapter 41</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>These chapters were super short - they felt more like short scenes. Important, but not really that related to the next bits. Next chapter is a bit longer.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Ginny Miller, leave your brother alone!”</p><p>Ginny looked up from her lunch, startled to see Marcus and MAN sitting around her with expressions ranging from concerned (Nora, bless her soul) to exasperated to slightly amused. She had been so lost in her thoughts, she didn’t even recognise the voice of the person who spoke. How was that possible? She didn’t even know if it was Marcus and he had a boy voice. </p><p>“Ugh!” Maxine let out an exasperated cry and continued, “I can feel all your worries about him from here! You said he was fine this morning. What if he can feel it every time you worry about him and it starts to freak him out?!”</p><p>“Fuck off,” Ginny responded, eloquent as ever, throwing a carrot slice in Max’s direction. It missed, terribly. “He can’t feel it when I’m worried, that’s ridiculous,” right? That wasn’t possible was it? Great, something new to worry about. What a joy.</p><p>Marcus tried a more diplomatic approach. “We just know that he doesn’t want you to be stressing so much about this when you can’t change things by worrying, Ginny. You’ll be able to talk to him and your mom when you get home, but there’s nothing you can do about it when you’re at school,” he said quietly, reassuringly, while rubbing soothing circles into her back.</p><p>“You don’t know what my brother wants, Marcus. You barely know him.” She whispered, viciously, grabbing her tray and standing up from the table. </p><p>“There, I’m leaving so you don’t have to worry about me any more. You can’t control what I’m thinking about right? So it’s easy to just ignore it, right?” She knew she was being a bitch. She knew they were just trying to help but it wasn’t. fucking. Helping.</p><p>She noticed Marcus starting to get up from the table and she stopped him with a glare. “Don’t. Follow. Me. Why are you even here, Marcus? Don’t you have your own weird friendship group drama to deal with? I’m sure Alex is really missing seeing you every day and I sure as hell don’t need you hovering over me like some worried mother hen. I’m fine. This is <i> my  </i> family issue. It has nothing to do with anyone else.”</p><p>Ginny stormed away, putting her tray, plates, and cutlery in the correct places after throwing her lunch in the bin more forcefully than usual. She was mad, but she wasn’t a fucking psycho. It wasn’t the cleaners’ fault that she was upset - she wasn’t going to make their life more difficult with her little teenage drama.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0042"><h2>42. Chapter 42</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>By the time Ginny made it to the library, she was already feeling a bit calmer. She knew that MMAN was right, and that she wasn’t helping Austin by worrying. She just felt so guilty about the fact that she hadn’t been there for him this whole time because she had been too busy trying to be cool and make friends. As if any of them were even half as important as her brother, the person who had been her best friend since he learned how to talk. </p><p>He was her closest confidant, the person who always knew how to cheer her up, and she had dropped him like a hot potato because of some ridiculously good looking people and her stupid libido. She was the worst sister in the world.</p><p>Ginny let out a groan and banged her head against the table, not realising that she was disturbing the person on the table behind her. They let out a small sigh, alerting Ginny to their presence and she muttered an apology, not wanting to get kicked out of the peaceful, quiet library.</p><p>“Everything alright?” she heard whispered from behind her. God damn, she’d never get used to the kindness of the strangers in this place. She wasn’t ready to make any more friends right now, though.</p><p>“Yeah, great. Everything is just perfect,” she muttered, trying to signal that this kind stranger did not want to be involved in her bullshit drama.</p><p>She heard movement from behind her as her unseen library buddy packed up their things and decided to move to a quieter area of the library. Great work, Miller. Just pushing people away left, right, and center. Fantastic.</p><p>“Well, I’m not getting any work done until I figure out this new mystery,” she heard her library buddy whisper, mischievously. It sounded like a female, and she had definitely moved all her things onto Ginny’s table.</p><p>Curious, but still unwilling to lift her head from its new home on the library table, Ginny let out a quiet groan and decided to be honest. It was like going to confession that time when her mom enrolled her in a catholic school. Free therapy with some religious dude who would forgive all your sins.</p><p>“Forgive me father for I have sinned,” she muttered with a smirk, causing her co-conspirator to let out a cute giggle. The sound of her giggle made Ginny smile.</p><p>“My brother got stabbed at school yesterday, in his class, with a pencil. I spent the evening in the hospital with him while he got stitches, and today he’s going straight back to the place where he was attacked. Everyone around me is telling me not to worry about it because my worrying isn’t helping,” she said, voice dead and in a monotone. She swore, if this person agreed with those assholes about not worrying, she was going to flip the table on her. Library rules be damned.</p><p>Luckily, her new buddy did not agree with the assholes. “How… how is that even possible? Stop worrying about your little brother who was attacked, literally yesterday? Fuck off!” She exclaimed, incredulous.</p><p>“I know, right!” Ginny lifted her head to share an incredulous look with her new bestie, only to realise that she wasn’t a stranger at all. “Oh! Padma. Hey, sorry. I didn’t recognise your voice.”</p><p>Shit. This was awkward.</p><p>“It’s alright, Ginny. It sounds like you’re going through a lot. I will forgive you for not immediately recognising the heavenly tones of my beautiful voice,” she graciously offered with a cheeky smile. Ginny was drawn in by the girl’s easy presence and dazzling smile. Was she some sort of Veela or some shit?</p><p>“Your voice really is beautiful,” she whispered, unable to look away from Padma’s face. She blushed, realising how creepy that probably sounded. “I mean, you know. When you sing? Adderall Brains is still in my head from when you practised it with the band. It was… incredible.”</p><p>Now it was Padma’s turn to blush and Ginny smirked internally, proud to be able to elicit that reaction from the beautiful, caring girl. </p><p>“Well, when I wrote it, I was going through a lot as well, you know? It kind of helped me to process everything that was going on with me. I had a lot of anxiety before, then when I was on Adderall it was just… like a different kind of fear. It was different, but not better.” She trailed off, lost in her memories of her darkest times.</p><p>Ginny didn’t like to see the troubled look on Padma’s face. She rested her head on her hand and playfully responded, “So… are you suggesting I write a song about my brother being stabbed with a pencil?” </p><p>That seemed to draw the girl back to the present and Ginny celebrated her win internally when Padma let out a tinkling, melodic laugh. “No! That would be… unless you feel like that would help?”</p><p>“Hah! That would help no one. In the world. I’m a terrible singer. Maybe you could write the song for me instead?” she teased, unsure if this was flirting, but just really enjoying being with the girl and having a lighthearted conversation where she wasn’t feeling judged or scrutinised. </p><p>They sat quietly, smiling at each other for a while. Ginny didn’t want to ruin the moment, but she had to address the elephant in the room. She sat up straight and held her hands in front of herself on the table.</p><p>“Look, about Marcus--” she started but Padma cut her off, quickly.</p><p>“No! You don’t have to - there wasn’t anything between us, really. I thought, but… Just. Be careful with him, alright? He’s been through a lot and he can’t take another heartbreak,” she cautioned, a pleading look on her face.</p><p>Ginny was… not expecting that reaction. This girl was like on a Hunter-Level of niceness. She should have been furious about the way Marcus had treated her, warning all his future girls about how horrible he was. Instead, she was pleading with Ginny not to hurt him like he had hurt her. Padma really, truly, loved the little idiot. </p><p>Ginny placed her hands on top of Padma’s on the table, looking at her with sincere awe and admiration. “He was so incredibly lucky to have you in his life, Padma. He doesn’t realise it now, but one day, he’ll understand what an absolute idiot he was for letting you go.”</p><p>Padma smiled, but Ginny could see the tears forming in her eyes. </p><p>She was heartbroken and she had no one she could confide in. All her friends were so dismissive of her feelings for Marcus because he had been going through a lot. They were so hateful, calling him a loser and a waste of space, just because he was struggling. Padma finally felt like she was allowed to share her thoughts with someone, finally able to talk about her relationship with Marcus without being judged or mocked. And it was with his new girlfriend, or fling, or whatever. </p><p>She couldn’t stop the tears from flowing freely down her face in the middle of the library. She was sobbing, actually sobbing, over this boy who had treated her so terribly. She was so weak and pathetic, begging for scraps of his attention when he clearly didn’t care about her at all. He was using her, and she had known it the entire time, desperately hoping that he would see something in her if she just gave him enough time.</p><p>But she was never good enough. She cried out all these feelings while Ginny held her in her arms, stroking her hair and making soothing sounds. She shared her deepest worries and thoughts with the girl who had managed to snare Marcus’ attention. Padma didn’t even feel any anger or resentment towards Ginny. How could she? She understood exactly how easy it was to fall in love with Marcus Baker. She hoped the other girl wouldn’t get destroyed by him, as Padma had been, but Padma had a feeling that Ginny was much stronger than she was.</p><p>“Now, that’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard. In my life. And my little brother Austin genuinely believes that his scumbag father is a dark wizard in Azkaban, so I can tell you I’ve heard some pretty ridiculous things in my life.” Ginny responded, after Padma shared her belief that Ginny was stronger than she was.</p><p> That managed to get a smile out of the girl. Good. Ginny had some hard truths she needed to lay on Padma, and she needed to make sure the girl was really listening to her.</p><p>“Hey. Let’s get out of here before we get kicked out of the library,” she suggested and Padma readily agreed. They packed their bags in silence and walked out of the library. </p><p>“I, uh, I don’t know anywhere good to go for private chats. Any ideas?” she asked, hoping that Padma knew of a spot that was better than that grimy old bike shed. Ginny was sick of that god damned shed.</p><p>“Yeah, I think I know a good spot,” Padma replied with a smile. “Follow me!” she grabbed Ginny’s hand and they ran through the corridors together, giggling at people’s shocked looks as they passed them by.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Soz guys, but I'm actually just obsessed with Padma. Her voice gives me chills. CHILLS. She is too good for everyone in Wellsbury.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0043"><h2>43. Chapter 43</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>They ran out of the school building, past the running track and football field. Ginny didn’t know if they were still on school property, but they had been going for at least 5 minutes and she had a killer stitch. Man, she was out of shape - puffing and wheezing like she had just run a marathon. </p><p>Padma led her to what seemed to be a… vegetable patch? It was surrounded by trees and would have been impossible to notice from a distance. The more Ginny looked around, the more breathtaking the clearing seemed to be. There were colourful wild flowers behind the rows of vegetables, and groups of fragrant blooms beyond that. </p><p>Ginny explored the area, taking in the beautiful plants, privately thinking to herself that her mom would have killed to get her hands on some of these flowers. She closed her eyes and inhaled, savouring the sweet, perfumey smell of the blossoms around her. It was the beginning of winter, and she knew these plants would all be dead soon. Ginny turned towards Padma, ready to show her gratitude to the girl for showing her this magical wonderland.</p><p>She was shocked and a bit embarrassed to see that Padma was observing her reaction closely, enjoying the wonder on Ginny’s face at discovering this beautiful spot for the first time. </p><p>Padma smiled sheepishly at Ginny, explaining, “There was a gardening club when I was in freshman year. One of the home ec teachers ran it but she left last year so it just kind of… stopped. I still come back here sometimes to escape and look after the plants. There were only a handful of us in the gardening club - it wasn’t the coolest thing in the world, but... It was nice. Calming. It helped me out a lot.”</p><p>She seemed embarrassed, like she had to justify the existence of this utopia. Ginny beamed and walked towards her, bringing her into a grateful hug. “Thank you so much for sharing this with me,” Ginny responded when she pulled back from the hug, looking into Padma’s eyes. </p><p>“Really. I mean it. It’s perfect and beautiful and magical and I’m so glad to be able to experience this. I’ve never seen any place so beautiful! And you’re saying students put this together? In a club? That’s so fucking awesome! I wish it was still going so I could join it! My mom would kill to be able to see this…” </p><p>Padma let out a giggle at Ginny’s reaction to her little garden project and Ginny flushed with embarrassment. </p><p>“Well, I come here most weeks to water and prune the plants. Look! I keep all my supplies in this corner over here,” she rushed over to a corner with a plastic box, still holding onto Ginny’s hand and dragging her along with her. </p><p>Padma started pulling out gardening gloves and plant food, watering pots, little mini shovel things, and all sorts, excitedly explaining to Ginny what each tool was used for. Her eyes lit up in excitement at the chance to be able to talk to someone else about something she was really passionate about and Ginny was totally mesmerised. </p><p>“This is… incredible! I’m rubbish at gardening, but you seem like you’d be a really good teacher? If you had the time and patience to deal with me, that is. My mom has banned me from our garden…” she had a guilty look on her face as she remembered the time she uprooted her mom’s Gladioli because she thought they were a weed…</p><p>Padma looked up at her and smiled sweetly. “I’d love to have you here to help me out. I think you’ll be a great protege. Now, lesson one: we need to water these bad boys. It hasn’t rained in a while, so they’re thirsty. Grab that watering can and follow me. There’s a little river we can get the water from so we don’t have to trek all the way back to the pipe!”</p><p>They walked the short distance to the little stream and watered the plants together. Ginny was feeling super proud of herself and couldn’t wait to get home and tell Austin about how great she was at gardening now. He was never going to believe her. She got a bit distracted by the thought of her brother, worrying about what he was doing at lunch time, if he was at school, if he was safe. No one had told her anything at all. She checked her phone again. Nothing.</p><p>Padma, noticing that Ginny was starting to look distracted, called her over to see something new. “Ginny! Oh my God, look at this!” she cried out, excited by what she thought she was discovering.</p><p>Ginny rushed over, intrigued by the excitement in Padma’s voice, and looked down at the flower she was pointing at. Padma was crouching over it protectively, almost cupping it in her hands.</p><p>“I’ve been working on this for so long, I never thought it would actually work!” she whispered, looking down at it with awe.</p><p>“Holy. Fucking. Shit.” Ginny exclaimed as she crouched down to look at the magnificent plant in front of her. “Is that a fucking… RAINBOW rose? That shit is like… blue and red and white and pink and yellow and.. purple?! How did you do this Padma??”</p><p>Ginny took out her phone and snapped about a hundred pictures. It was amazing! She didn’t know nature could make something so beautiful. </p><p>“Well, essentially, I’ve been experimenting with hybrid roses for a while.” she explained, still whispering as though speaking too loudly would kill the miraculous plant in front of her. “I’ve been able to get two, maybe three colours in a single rose before by splicing the genes together,” she said, as though it were some easy feat to just create completely new plants, “but getting any more than that has been really tricky. It just doesn’t seem to take. I’ve been trying to cross-pollinate different 3-coloured roses to see if the colours will all come through, but getting the blues and purples onto the plant has been impossible… until now!”</p><p>She jumped up excitedly and started rifling through containers and grabbing tools. When she walked towards the rose with a flower pot and a little shovel thing, Ginny grabbed her shoulders, afraid of what she was about to do. </p><p>“Woah, woah, woah! Where are you going with those things?” she exclaimed, not wanting to see this incredible flower killed in Padma’s excitement.</p><p>“Oh! Yes, well, I have a greenhouse at home, so I’m going to dig up this rose and the ones around it, preserving their roots, so that I can put them in a safer environment. Hopefully they’ll be able to survive the winter that way. It’s not ideal, but it’s better than leaving them out here to die and hoping they’ll bloom again next year. Maybe I’ll even be able to grow more rainbow plants next year, based on this plant. This is so exciting!” she squealed and picked Ginny up in a hug.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Guys, I don't know shit about gardening. I just wanted Ginny to have a nice moment with someone who wasn't  Marcus!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0044"><h2>44. Chapter 44</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>By the time they got back to school, Ginny had completely forgotten about being worried about Austin. She was too excited about showing him the new plant that Padma had created! Padma didn’t want anyone else at school to see it, and was planning to place the plant safely in the boot of her car before they went back into school.</p><p>Before they could get there, though, Ginny’s attention was grabbed by a very familiar looking motorcycle. She looked around frantically and checked her phone to see if there were any messages she had missed earlier. Nothing.</p><p>They continued towards Padma’s car when Ginny saw him, walking up to her and trying to look like the coolest person in the world.</p><p>“DADDY!!” she burst out and ran up to him, forgetting everything but the man in front of her. She was enveloped in his warm embrace, finally feeling safe and secure again after feeling uncertain and panicked for so long. </p><p>Ridiculously, she had the urge to cry her heart out, but she managed to swallow down that feeling as he whispered, “I’ve missed you little bean,” into her hair.</p><p>She pulled away from him, grinning and excited that he was here! Finally! In her school! At lunch time?</p><p>“How - Wha- Why are you here!!?” she asked, still failing to believe that her dad had really managed to find her at school without her knowledge. </p><p>“Your mom told me about Austin yesterday. I had a few things to take care of, but I came here as soon as I could.” He said softly, looking at her with concern. “How’re you holding up?” he asked quietly, taking in the dark bags under his daughter’s eyes.</p><p>Ginny fidgeted, not wanting her dad to know how much she had been struggling. She knew he didn’t really understand her anxiety. He and her mom had always been so fearless. They could do anything, face anything. Ginny was a complete mess, unable to cope with the most basic difficulties. </p><p>They didn’t make her feel bad about it or anything, but she was sure they had seen some real shit when they were in a biker gang with Uncle Marty. And here she was, panicking because her brother got hurt at school. </p><p>“I’m alright,” she said, trying to sound stronger than she felt. “It was - and then- OH! DAD! Look at what Padma made! Sorry - Padma, this is my dad.” She practically dragged her dad back to a stunned Padma who was still standing right where Ginny had left her, holding her amazing creation with an adorable look of shock on her face. </p><p>“Dad! This is Padma. She’s a Junior, but she’s some kind of gardening genius. She made this rainbow rose by cross-pollinating a shit load of roses together! Look!” In her excitement, Ginny had forgotten that Padma didn’t want anyone to see her new rainbow rose for some reason.</p><p>Her eyes widened in horror, hoping she hadn’t put Padma in a bad position. “Shit. Sorry, Padma. Is it alright that my dad sees it? He won’t tell anyone or anything!” She winced, seeing that Padma was still looking at her dad in shock.</p><p>Padma’s cheeks flushed as she snapped back to reality and she stuttered, “Uh, no! Yeah! He can see it! If he wants, I mean, it’s nothing impressive or anything…” looking anywhere but at Zion, who was staring in amazement at what she was holding in her hands.</p><p>“Padma,” he said in his smoothest voice. Ginny rolled her eyes - seriously? “It is Padma, right?” he asked, getting Padma to look up into his eyes and blush, hard, nodding. “This is an incredible feat. I’ve travelled a lot, seen different parts of the world, but I’ve never seen something like this, growing anywhere. It’s very impressive. You should be proud of your work!” He finished off with a devastating smile and Ginny could see Padma melting into him. God damnit, dad. </p><p>“Ugh! Leave Padma alone, she doesn’t need your approval. She knows her gardening skills are insane, don’t you?” Ginny interrupted, trying to stop her friend from falling for her dad’s wiles. The effect he had on women was absolutely ridiculous. He needed to control himself. He knew exactly what he was doing. Ginny narrowed her eyes at him.</p><p>“Padma has been through enough this year, Dad. She doesn’t need you leading her on!” she fumed, smacking him in the arm. “Besides, you didn’t come here to ogle high school girls! You’re here to visit your high school daughter. Padma, how old are you?” Ginny asked, trying to remind her dad to leave the underage girl alone.</p><p>Really, Ginny knew he wasn’t up to anything nefarious, but she was kind of enjoying teasing them both. Zion’s amused smile showed that he knew exactly what his daughter was trying, but poor Padma looked like she was ready to have a heart attack.</p><p>“No! I know I’d never - I just- I’m seventeen” she spluttered, but then seemed to gain a bit of confidence, moving closer to Zion and looking him in the eye, “But I’ll be eighteen in a couple months.” Her voice had taken on a deeper, more husky tone and Ginny had to swallow hard, not expecting the girl to turn into this sultry sex kitten in front of her dad.</p><p>Ginny cleared her throat and fanned herself a bit, not really sure what to do with this new development.</p><p>Zion, however, seemed amused by her forwardness. He let out one of his explosive laughs, taking a step back, impressed by the audacity of this kid. “Wow, this one’s dangerous, Ginny. Where’d you find her?”</p><p>Ginny blushed and smiled, still not quite able to get over this flirty, dominant side of Padma. She shook herself, trying to snap out of it, and deadpanned, “The library,” causing Zion to laugh yet again.</p><p>“It’s true! She’s wicked smart and she works really hard. You’ll never find someone more kind or caring, either. But leave her alone, she’s <i> my </i> friend. Now, stay here. I’ll be back,” she ordered with a mock glare at her father.</p><p>Honestly, the man had been here less than five minutes and he already had the prettiest, smartest girl in school trying to figure out how to become his wifey. She couldn’t take him  <i> anywhere </i> .</p><p>She linked arms with Padma and power walked them straight to the girl’s car, helping her to safely put her incredible plant into the trunk.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Introducing: Zion Miller. The character I found impossible to write.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0045"><h2>45. Chapter 45</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Sorry about him,” Ginny sighed once they made it to Padma’s car, “He literally has no off-switch. Believe me, I’ve tried. You’ll get used to him eventually though. He doesn’t mean any harm. Please don’t be creeped out. He would never go for an underage girl,” she pleaded, then winced, realising how bad it sounded to actually have to verbalise that defence. </p><p>In her mind, if you have to clarify that someone wouldn’t actually go for an underage girl, there was something seriously wrong with the situation.</p><p>“Ginny, your dad is fucking hot. If he would have me, I would be there, no questions asked!” Padma sighed dreamily, “Mmmm and his voice. My god.” She fanned herself. Actually fanned herself. Ginny groaned out loud.</p><p>She tapped Padma on the nose as though she were a naughty dog. “Bad, Padma! Do not get involved in my dad’s weird drama with my mom. If you thought Marcus was emotionally closed off, you have no idea how bad my dad is…” </p><p>That wasn’t fair and she knew it. It wasn’t that he was closed off, per se, it was just that he didn’t have any room in his heart for anyone but her mom. It wasn’t healthy and she wanted him to be able to move on, but she knew it would take a lot.</p><p>Noticing the sad look in her friend’s eyes, Padma softened. “I wasn’t really being serious. I would never try anything with your dad… No matter how God damned beautiful he is. Like. He is ridiculously hot. You can see that right?” she teased, trying to get Ginny to smile.</p><p>“Yea, I know. My dad is hot, my mom is hot, and I got stuck looking like a potato. How do genetics even allow for that to happen? It’s like how Angelina Jolie is the most incredibly beautiful person on the planet, but her brother looks like Steve Buscemi. How is that fair?” Ginny whined, teasingly.</p><p>A laugh exploded out of Padma at the idea of Ginny comparing herself to a potato and Steve Buscemi in the same breath. “You know you’re just as hot as your parents, right?” she said, hitting Ginny on the shoulder for being such a dope.</p><p>Now it was Ginny’s turn to laugh. “Yeah! Good one. Come on, let’s get you back to class before you try to run away with my dad to become my new step-mommy,” she said as she shooed Padma towards the school building. “I think I’m going to head home with my dad. I’ll see you around, okay?”</p><p>Before Padma could move away further, Ginny grabbed her hand and pulled her back for a moment. “Um. Sorry, I just - thanks. You know - for today,” she said earnestly, “It was really looking rough for me there, and you didn’t have to pull me out of it. I’m really glad you did, though.” </p><p>Padma smiled, looking down at Ginny sweetly. “I’m glad I did, too,” she said, with a wink, and then walked back to the building. </p><p>Ginny smiled as she watched Padma walk into school. </p><p>She groaned when she felt an arm wrap around her shoulder, hoping her dad wouldn’t ruin the moment with some smartass comment.</p><p>“So… anything you want to tell me about, Virginia Miller?” He asked suggestively, wiggling his eyebrows in Padma’s direction.</p><p>“Uggghhhhhh Dad! Could you just - not? For like, one day?” she groaned into his chest. He chuckled as he led her back to his bike, making sure she put on her helmet and jacket securely.  </p><p>“Now, Ginny, you know it’s my right as a dad to make you feel as awkward as possible at all times.” He lectured, teasingly poking her in the cheek. </p><p>She smiled, unable to help herself. Her dad just made her feel so light and carefree. Like he was ready to take all her problems away from her so she could be free. She wished he could be around all the time, so she wouldn’t feel like she was under so much pressure all the time.</p><p>“So, are we gonna practise doing Wheelies today??” she asked, excited at the prospect of retrying that trick on his bike. </p><p>“You’re kind of out of practice, kid. Why don’t we see how your normal riding is before we get back to that? You knocked yourself up pretty good last time you tried it. You sure you’re ready to get back on?” He asked in concern, tracing the small scar on her temple with a guilty look on his face.</p><p>“Daaaad!! That was literally MONTHS ago! I’ve ridden a bike since then, too, I’ll have you know. And I wasn’t even scared or anything.” She bragged, trying to prove that she was ready to get back to practising her new trick. She felt like a little kid when her dad was here. She didn’t need to be so adult with him around, and her voice was starting to sound more bratty and whiney as a result. Ugh.</p><p>“Oh, really? Your mom got herself a bike?” He asked, curious. Ginny looked to the side and shifted her helmet slightly.</p><p>“Oh, um. Actually, no. Although, please, can we try to convince her to get me one for my birthday?? It’s coming up soon, and it’s a big one!! My sweet sixteen.” She let out a huge, dramatic gasp. “Oh my God, Dad! PLEASE. I didn’t know how much I wanted a bike of my own but PLEASE. I need it! For my birthday! We have to!!” She was literally bouncing with excitement at the idea of getting her own bike. </p><p>Zion laughed, letting out a sigh of relief at seeing his daughter act like an actual sixteen year old kid instead of a thirty-year-old with all the worries that came with adulthood. </p><p>“I’ve known how to ride for ages! I am really safe when I ride, you know that! It’s as natural to me as breathing. And I need to be able to travel around now. I have a job, you know? It would be really helpful for me to be able to get to my job and back with a bike. A good, stable, safe bike. I’d even take a beginner’s bike, you know!” She knew she was rambling, but the idea was so brilliant, so inspired. She couldn’t believe she had never thought about it before. </p><p>Her face fell as she remembered what her mom told her, about Kenny’s ex-wife trying to take all their money. They couldn’t afford something as silly as a motorbike for her sixteenth birthday. That was pretty ridiculous now that she really thought about it.</p><p>“Maybe now isn’t a good time for it, actually” she finished in a quiet voice, feeling a bit more glum at the reminder of what a shit show her life was. “I really don’t need one, so it’s probably not a great idea,” she said with a small smile, getting ready to climb on her dad’s bike.</p><p>Zion, observant as ever - although that mood change was pretty damned obvious - immediately sensed his daughter’s distress, and was concerned that she had gone from feeling so excited about getting a bike for her birthday, to totally dismissing it within a few seconds. There was something serious going on there.</p><p>He tilted her chin up so she could look at him and he studied her expression carefully. “Hey. What happened there? You were making some pretty convincing arguments about why you should have a bike. What made you change your mind?” he asked, not liking the worry he saw in her eyes.</p><p>She smiled, but he knew it wasn’t going to reach her eyes. There was another expression there - fear? He remembered her distressed phone call about her mom from a few weeks ago and the worried feeling in his gut started to grow. He needed to talk to Georgia about her Houston situation. </p><p>“I - I’m not sure if mom would want me to say. It’s nothing big. I just - it’s not the best time is all.” she replied, and her expression closed down completely. Curt. Dismissive. Well, she was clearly picking up some habits from her mom, and Zion knew he couldn’t push her to talk about it, lest she lash out and say something she might regret. </p><p>He raised his hands in surrender and replied, “Alright! I know when it’s not safe to pry,” and then continued with a manipulative tone, and a fake sigh, “I just wonder how I’m going to get to your house if I don’t really know where you live. I mean… I  <i> could  </i> take the risk of riding on unfamiliar roads, but…”</p><p>Ginny instantly perked up again, excited to be able to drive home, “Really? I can drive us home? You trust me to drive us both all the way home?” she asked, beaming.</p><p>“Kid, you’ve been riding for years. It’s about time I got something back for all the time I’ve spent teaching you how to ride. Soon, I won’t have to go anywhere without my personal chauffeur to drive me around,” he laughed, chucking the keys in her direction, impressed that she managed to catch it without hesitation. </p><p>She smiled at him smarmily and he knew exactly what she was going to say before she said it. He mimicked along with her, “’Well, technically Uncle Marty is the one who started teaching me to ride’ - You were EIGHT YEARS OLD! I wasn’t going to let an EIGHT year old ride a motorbike. Would you let Austin steer a bike?” He argued, knowing that this argument got more and more difficult to win every year. </p><p>Of course, she would let Austin steer a bike; the kid was more responsible than any 8-year-old had any right to be. Ginny didn’t even respond verbally. She just looked at him pointedly and got on the bike with a smirk.</p><p>Damn, Zion had missed this feeling. He wasn’t complete without his family - there was always something missing, no matter who he was with or how far he travelled. He was damn sure sticking around this time. He wouldn’t be separated from the people he loved ever again.</p>
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<a name="section0046"><h2>46. Chapter 46</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Aaand, finally, that’s the racist-ass clothes shop with the woman who assumed I would steal her hideous earrings because I had the audacity to be black in her shop!” Ginny finished off her brief tour of the town. “Oh, and that’s the weed shop mom helped to set up across the street,” she added sheepishly.</p><p>At Zion’s bemused expression, she continued, “It was a big deal for the town! A Medical Marijuana dispensary really boosts a town’s economy. The mayor was very pleased when it could finally be set up.” </p><p>Instead of driving straight home, her dad had asked her to drive them to Blue Farm so he could see where she worked, and from there she had dragged him around town to show him everywhere she had explored. They stopped briefly at each location so she could tell him a story about why it was important to her. It was nice to show off her town to her dad. She had never been as excited about a place as she had been about Wellsbury. </p><p>As she navigated them back to her house, she felt Zion squeeze her shoulder, indicating that he wanted her to pull over. When she found a safe place to pull over, she pulled them into a smooth stop.</p><p>“Not bad at all, kid!” he exclaimed once they had dismounted. “I have one last surprise for you, though,” he said as they swapped positions for him to drive them the rest of the way home.</p><p>Rolling her eyes at the thought that her dad really thought she would be surprised by the fact that he knew the way to their house, Ginny was caught off guard when he pulled onto an unfamiliar road a couple blocks away and stopped the bike.</p><p>She looked at him, unimpressed. “You were so close! This isn’t our house though. It’s two blocks down from here,” she smiled cheekily at him, already planning all the ‘you’re so senile, you couldn’t even use Google Maps’ jokes she could make about him in the future. He was never going to live this embarrassment down.</p><p>He looked around, confused, and Ginny started preparing to get back on the bike.</p><p>“Are you sure?” he asked, looking around and walking up the street.</p><p>Ginny looked at him like he was on crack. “Yes. I think I know the place I’ve been sleeping in for months. Come on, dad, I want to go home and check on Austin!” she whined.</p><p>Zion started checking his pockets for his keys, and Ginny swore, if he started pretending he had lost his keys so they couldn’t go home, she was walking there on her own. It would take like 2 minutes. Not much of a trek at all. She glared as he pulled them from his pocket.</p><p>“So, I guess you don’t want to check out where your old man will be staying?” he smirked as he walked up to the town house in front of him.</p><p>Ginny jumped up off the bike and ran up to him, grabbing his keys.</p><p>“Staying?! What do you mean, where you’ll be staying? You’re not staying with us?!” She practically screamed at him in excitement.</p><p>“Well, I figured, with your mom seeing someone and me wanting to be closer to my family, I should probably find my own place nearby. What do you think?” He smiled, but he was feeling pretty nervous. This was the first time he had made such permanent, concrete plans to stay near his daughter and he didn’t know how she would react.</p><p>“What about the place you bought in Boston?” she asked, quietly, confused. Afraid to get her hopes up.</p><p>“Ah, yes. That was more of an investment property, really. I’m renting it out to a lovely family while I live here. If… that’s cool with my teenage daughter? I don’t know if it’ll cramp your style to have your old man living so close to you,” he finished, trying to sound smooth, but unable to hide the insecurity in his question.</p><p>Tears sprang into Ginny’s eyes as she launched herself at her dad. She hugged him tight and didn’t let go. He squeezed her back, just as unwilling to let go of her.</p><p>“I’m so sorry I missed out on so much, Gummy Bear,” he whispered, tears leaking from his eyes as well. He hadn’t realised the amount of guilt he carried around because of the fact that he could never stick around to make things work with Ginny and Georgia. </p><p>He had been such an asshole, only staying with his family on the condition that he could be romantically involved with her mom. Calling and supporting from a distance, instead of being easily within reach. Zion couldn’t believe his little girl still cared so deeply for him, even after how shit he had been as a father. He needed to prove to her that he could be here for her, even if he wasn’t with Georgia. </p><p>“I can’t believe you’re really staying this time,” she sobbed into his shoulder. “I’ve wished for this for so long, dad,” she whispered. Zion’s heart shattered into a million pieces, hearing Ginny so desperate for some stability. He was an absolute piece of shit and she deserved so much better.</p><p>He put her down and looked at her puffy, red little face, as he held her in front of him. “I’m sorry it took me so long to get my shit together, Princess. I should have been here with you this whole time, even if your mom and I couldn’t make it work. Will you give me a chance to earn your forgiveness?” he asked, choking on his tears and trying to wipe them away quickly.</p><p>Ginny smiled and held onto his hand, stopping him from wiping his tears so harshly. She gently wiped the tears from his face, proud that her dad was able to express his emotions so freely. “What’s there to forgive?” she asked with a smile, “You were figuring out your life. I’m just glad you’ve decided to stick around. Really stick around. How long do you have this place for?”</p><p>“I signed a 12-month lease last week. Renewable every year. I can be here as long as you want me,” he laughed, feeling unbelievably relieved that his daughter was so forgiving. She beamed at him, and then got an evil little smile on her face.</p><p>“Does mom know?” she asked, smugly, already pretty sure she knew the answer to that question.</p><p>Zion shuffled side-to-side and straightened his posture, a sure sign he was feeling uncomfortable. “Ah, yes. Well, you see... No. She does not have any idea. I was hoping you’d help me break the news to her?” </p><p>“HAH!” Ginny burst out, “As if. Mom is DEFINITELY the type to shoot the messenger. You’re on your own there, pops. Good luck!” she finished with a smile, running up to check out her dad’s new place.</p><p>“Which one’s my room?” she shouted from upstairs once he entered the house. She couldn’t believe it. Her dad was actually going to be living in the same town. In his own place. Where she could have her own room if she wanted. She let out an excited squeal and ran into the next room to explore.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I just deleted four chapters because I hated them. They're gone now. Doing a complete rewrite of them. Zion Miller, I love the guy, but he is fucking me up.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0047"><h2>47. Chapter 47</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Well, well, well!” Georgia Miller exclaimed as she watched her daughter ride home on a bike that could only belong to the girl’s father. She had been expecting Zion to come and visit, after she had called him in tears for possibly the second or third time since she had met him. If she were being honest, she was surprised he didn’t drop everything and show up unannounced a few hours after their conversation.</p><p>She didn’t know what to do about the feeling of disappointment she had that he hadn’t shown up immediately during her moment of vulnerability. She knew she was with Paul, and she could have told him to come over; there was just something about Zion Miller that made her feel safe and protected. She needed him, even if he was just on the phone. He steadied her, and she relied on him in a way she had never wanted to rely on another human being in her life. It scared the shit out of her. </p><p>Georgia smoothed her dress and ignored Ginny’s smirk. That girl was too observant for her own good.</p><p>Ginny gave her mom a tight hug, whispering, “Dad’s back!” as though her mom hadn’t been staring at him non-stop since they had arrived.</p><p>There was a certain excitement in the air whenever Zion Miller was around. It was palpable. Ginny watched her mom carefully as her dad approached. She didn’t like the look of wonder on the woman’s face, as though she had never seen the man in front of her before. It reminded her of how Ginny felt when she was with Marcus and that just… wasn’t something she wanted to think about. Ever.</p><p>Austin ran to Ginny and gave her a long hug. Ginny held him tightly, glad that he seemed to be in high spirits. She held him back so she could really inspect him.</p><p>“How was it?” she asked, nervously. Please, please, please let him be alright.</p><p>“It was amazing! I went to school right from the morning and everyone wanted to play with me! We played hide and seek tag like we did yesterday! And then at lunch time, Frankie and Ryan asked me to sit with them and we talked about a girls vs boys game for tomorrow! We’re gonna beat them now because we’re best friends.” He spoke excitedly without stopping for breath, and Ginny couldn’t see any sign that he was just pretending to be alright.</p><p>Was he… really making friends? “Are you sure you’re alright, Austin? I don’t want you pretending to be alright with everything. I haven’t even seen you cry at all since… I just - you know there’s nothing to be ashamed about, crying when someone hurts you - right?” She held both sides of his face, stroking his cheeks gently with her thumbs. She didn’t want to bring him down, but she needed him to know that it was good to express emotion in a healthy way. It was kinda the hill that she was ready to die on, at this point. </p><p>“I know. Remember? I cried when I was telling you and Marcus about how scared I was to go back to school!” He exclaimed, proud of himself for being able to cry without feeling embarrassed.</p><p>Ginny’s eyes widened in mortification. Of course, yes. Her brother had cried when he admitted how afraid he was of the bully that… ended up stabbing him. In the hand. With a pencil. During class. Fucking hell.</p><p>“Yeah,” she smiled, even though she felt like curling up into a ball and crying until she was a better sister, “You did. I’m glad you can express your emotions in a healthy way, Austin. That’s really important. I’m proud of you for not being ashamed to cry,” she said, as she shamefully tried not to cry. Hypocrite.</p><p>Austin’s excitement faded as he looked up to see his mom and Zion looking at each other with googoo eyes. “Uh oh,” he said, eyes wide, pointing them out to Ginny.</p><p>Ginny groaned, realising that throughout her entire conversation with Austin, her mom and dad had moved closer to each other and were looking at each other like they wanted to rip each other’s clothes off. UGHHHH they did not have time for this.</p><p>She looked at her brother. “You distract Zion, I’ll take Georgia,” she whispered, grabbing her mom by the arm and leading her back into the house. Behind her, she could hear Austin screaming, “Zion!!” shortly followed by Zion’s grunts of exertion as Austin clearly jumped into his arms.</p>
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<a name="section0048"><h2>48. Chapter 48</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Ginny smirked at her mom as she led her to the kitchen and started pouring a glass of wine for Georgia. “Drink,” she ordered, tempted to laugh out loud at the shocked look on Georgia’s face as she was presented with a glass of her own wine.</p><p>“Don’t do this, mom,” she pleaded, hoping to spare her parents some heartbreak. “You’re chasing the ghost of a good thing with dad. Your time has passed, or it just hasn’t come yet. Now isn’t your time for him. You see that, right?”</p><p>“You know I hate it when you quote songs to me in conversation,” Georgia groused, ignoring the topic of conversation completely.</p><p>“Well, you shouldn’t make me listen to music with such wise lyrics!” Ginny retorted, giving her mom a chance to think on what she had said. “Really though, we like Paul. Don’t mess up what you’ve got with him because you can’t let go of what you had with dad.” </p><p>Georgia raised an eyebrow. “Since when do we like Paul?”</p><p>“Well, you know. He’s not the worst person you’ve ever dated, and he’s not the worst looking guy in town, is all…” Ginny shrugged. She didn’t have any particular problem with the guy, and he didn’t seem to be some awful creep. “He’s nice to Austin.” she said, as though it explained everything. Which it definitely did.</p><p>Georgia smiled, thinking about what a great guy Paul really was. She was shocked that he had managed to win over her teenage daughter. That was quite a feat. None of her previous partners had managed that. Perhaps she should have trusted Ginny’s judgement this whole time…</p><p>“You’ve got nothing to worry about, honey. Your father and I are perfectly capable of controlling ourselves around each other now,” she said, wistfully, biting her lip. </p><p>“Ughhhhhh,” Ginny groaned, hoping they’d at least last a couple days before they jumped into bed together. “Well, you’d better try extra hard this time,” she teased with a smirk, getting a sudden stroke of inspiration.</p><p>“Oh? Why’s that?” her mom responded, curious about what could possibly have put that awful smile on her daughter’s face.</p><p>Ginny popped a grape into her mouth with a smug smile. “You won’t be able to push dad away if you regret sleeping with him this time,” she said casually with a shrug.</p><p>Georgia was smelling a rat. “What do you know, you little shit?” she growled, and Ginny laughed, dancing away from her mom.</p><p>“Oh, just that he’s got his own place in town for the next year at least. So, if you’re planning to sleep with him and then send him packing, I’d find a new plan if I were you!” she explained smugly, trying and failing to sound casual about the fact that her dad had made these huge life-changing decisions just to be near her. “He’s here for  <i> me  </i> this time. He’s really trying, mom. I understand that you’re drawn to each other. I get it,  <i> really, </i> ” she trailed off, thinking about the feelings she had when she was with Marcus. She couldn’t even imagine how awful it would be - resisting him for 15 years. </p><p>She walked up to her mom and placed a kiss on the top of her forehead. “Just, be careful, alright? Paul empowers you in a way no one else ever has. He really thinks you’re the most powerful and terrifying human being around, as he damn well should.” she explained with a grin, amused by the pleased expression on her mom’s face as she thought about how awe-inspired Paul was when he was with her. </p><p>“You work really well with him! You’ve basically ensured that he will be mayor after the next election and he’s not going to forget that. I just want you to be smart, and think with your head not your - well, you know…” she trailed off, awkwardly, fairly certain she had overstepped but not really caring that much.</p><p>“When did my little girl grow up into a wise old woman?” Georgia asked, only half joking. “I’m glad you like Paul, sweetie. I’ll take your advice on board, all right? But if your dad is here to stay, has his own place and is going to be around more…” she let out a sigh, scared to accept that she could really, finally have everything she had wanted for so long. “I’ll try to be smart, but I might just have to follow my heart this time.” </p><p>“Alright mom. I’ll trust your judgement,” Ginny replied, heading outside to see how Austin was doing, distracting Zion.</p>
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<a name="section0049"><h2>49. Chapter 49</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Austin was in the middle of his story explaining how he, Marcus, and Caleb had made a Quidditch pitch in the backyard when Ginny arrived ready to save Zion from the distraction. Zion was looking just as excited about the Quidditch pitch as Austin, though, and Ginny was ready to leave him to it when Austin suddenly screamed out.</p><p>“MARCUS!!!” He jumped up and down, waving at his friend who was just arriving home from school. Ginny’s eyes widened as she realised that her… person… was about to meet her dad. And she hadn’t told her dad about him. Like, at all. Not even mentioned in passing. This was not good.</p><p>As Austin ran to Marcus across the street, Zion leaned down to whisper to Ginny, “Uhh, when he said his friend Marcus lived across the road, I thought he meant someone…” he looked to the side, trying to figure out a diplomatic way to phrase his thought.</p><p>“You thought he was talking about another 8-year-old kid, huh?” Ginny giggled, fully understanding how her dad would have come to that conclusion.</p><p>“Well, yeah! I wasn’t expecting a grown-ass teenager to want to hang out with an 8-year-old so much!” he exclaimed, laughing at the odd friendship pairing in front of him.</p><p>Before Ginny could even begin to try to explain how Marcus and Austin had become such fast friends, she was cut off by her brother, who was excitedly dragging Marcus to meet his father figure.</p><p>“Zion!! Zion, this is Marcus! He’s here! Marcus, come and meet Zion!” he was yelling loud enough to alert the entire neighbourhood that Marcus and Zion were about to meet.</p><p>Ginny looked back to the house and saw her mom watching this car wreck about to unfold, shooting her a pleading look to encourage her to step in and save her somehow. Georgia just raised her glass in her daughter’s direction and shot her a wink. </p><p>Ugh.  </p><p>Ginny could only watch wide-eyed as Marcus was forced to meet her dad with no warning, no preparation. She was trying to think back to figure out if she had ever mentioned her dad in conversation with Marcus and she was seriously drawing a blank. It wasn’t like she was ashamed of either of them. She loved her dad… and you know… she was kinda with Marcus, in a sense. She just, didn’t ever expect them to have to encounter each other.</p><p>She wanted to bury her face in her hands as Austin dragged the two men into the backyard so he could talk more about the Quidditch pitch. At least that saved her from having to try to interact casually with Marcus in front of her dad.</p><p>She was  <i> going  </i> to tell her dad about him at some point. Just - preferably not today, when she still wasn’t even a hundred percent sure what she was doing with Marcus. How would she even introduce him? “Hi dad, this is the guy I lost my virginity to. We’re not dating, and we’ve only just managed to acknowledge each other in public this week, despite the fact that we had sex months ago!” Yeah, not going to happen.</p><p>Marcus wasn’t her boyfriend or anything. She didn’t  <i> need </i> to formally introduce him to her dad until there was something more concrete between them. She’d just… let her dad think that he was Austin’s creepy older friend for a little while! That would be fine.</p>
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<a name="section0050"><h2>50. Chapter 50</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>It was much later in the evening, after they had eaten dinner and Zion had gone home, that Ginny realised that Marcus had left the house without saying goodbye to her. Or texting. Or climbing up her window. Sure, they hadn’t planned to see each other or anything, but he had been hanging out with her dad and brother… in her house. Maybe she should have hung around downstairs, instead of going upstairs to finish off her maths assignment.</p><p>That had never stopped him from coming to see her before, though?</p><p>Was he mad that she hadn’t wanted his brand of support at lunch time? That she couldn’t think of anything but her little brother’s first day back at school after being attacked in class?</p><p>She had been pretty harsh on him, she guessed. But she was always kind of a bitch to Marcus. That was their thing. Right? If she had to apologise every time she lost her shit… No, yeah, she definitely  <i> should  </i> apologise every time she lost her shit for no reason. He was only trying to help.</p><p>She tried calling him but got no answer, so she sent a message instead.</p><p>GM: I’m sorry about earlier :(. Are we okay?</p><p>He was definitely avoiding her. She deserved it for being such a bitch to him all the time. Marcus deserved someone who would be patient with him and appreciate his support. He had literally hung out with her friends, who he had never enjoyed spending time with, just so he could be with her. And what had she done as thanks?</p><p>Bitched him out for being around all the time. And then left him to deal with the fallout. She hadn’t even looked back.</p><p>Fuck.</p><p>Her phone buzzed and Ginny grabbed for it quickly. </p><p>MB: Can I come in?</p><p>She smiled like an idiot and looked up at her window. He was waiting outside grinning back at her, obviously having observed her reaction to his message.</p><p>Ginny felt her face heat as she nodded at him. She didn’t even make a smart remark about him using the door. She was just too glad that he still wanted to see her.</p><p>“Hi, Marcus,” she greeted, shyly.</p><p>“Ginny,” he responded, with his dopey half-smile, “Hi.”</p><p>Ginny grinned, moving even closer to him. He circled his arms around her waist and they stood like that, just taking each other in.</p><p>“Hi,” she repeated, breathless after looking at him,  <i> really looking at him, </i> for the first time in a long time. Had she really been so consumed by her worries that she hadn’t even taken the time to admire his face? Was she finally getting used to his ridiculous beauty?</p><p>His smile grew into a full, real smile and the light from the street lamps lit up his face with a soft glow.</p><p>No, Ginny was never going to get used to that smile. She couldn’t look away from it.</p><p>He leaned closer to her, whispering into her ear, “You said that already.” Ginny’s eyes fluttered shut and she felt goosebumps rising on the back of her neck.</p><p>“Right, yes.” She cleared her throat and stepped back a bit, “Um, how long can you stay?” </p><p>He reached into his jacket’s inner pocket, replying, “As long as you want me,” and pulling out a little package.</p><p>“I’m sorry about earlier--” she started, but he cut her off, walking right up to her and putting his finger on her lips.</p><p>“No, don’t. Please. I know how much you were worrying about Austin. I just wanted to help,” he pleaded, as though he had been the one who had yelled at her for no reason.</p><p>Marcus handed the package to Ginny as a peace offering. “I know you really liked their cupcakes so…”</p><p>Ginny gasped, amazed that he had remembered her stupid love for these cupcakes. She looked up at him in wonder, loving the pink flush to his cheeks. Was he embarrassed about finding the perfect thing for her? She bit her lip, trying to fight the goofy smile that threatened to take over her entire face.</p><p>“Thanks,” she whispered, looking up at him, taking in the unusual amount of pinkness on his cheeks and the windswept look in his hair. “How did you..?”</p><p>“I um… may have ridden my bike so I could get there before closing time…?” he answered guiltily. </p><p>Again, Ginny couldn’t help the gasp that left her mouth as she hit him in the arm. “Marcus! You don’t know how to ride that thing and so you decided to ride it across town for… cupcakes?! That makes. No. Sense!!” She punctuated each word with a hit.</p><p>He raised his hands in surrender and moved back to safety, crying out, “Aaaw come on, Ginny! I was safe as could be, I promise!” As though that would excuse his dumb decision. “I’ve been practising a lot, you know. I think I can handle a short journey to the bakery.” </p><p>Ginny raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms, unexpectedly furious at his carefree attitude. “Oh really? You’ve been practising riding your motorbike at night, on busy roads, in a rush to get to a shop before it closes?” She asked sarcastically.</p><p>“Who did you tell that you were going? Did you check in with anyone when you got to the bakery so they could know when to expect you home? You could have crashed, or fallen off your bike, or been hit by another driver! Did you think about any of this before your dumb ass travelled across town?!”</p><p>God damnit, Miller, you JUST apologised for losing your shit at him for no reason. Now probably wasn’t the time to have this fight.</p><p>“Ginny, I promise you, I took every precaution before going,” he pleaded, trying to calm her.</p><p>Ginny slumped, looking at the floor. She really had no right to be lecturing him like this. She wasn’t his mother, or his girlfriend. He shouldn’t have to justify his actions to her. Anyone else would have just taken the damned cupcakes and said thank you.</p><p>“Sorry. I just… I hate the idea of you being hurt on the road when no one knows where you are,” she admitted, defeated. Ginny Miller was an absolute fucking mess. Her anxiety levels were through the roof and she was just being an absolute nightmare. She should probably hide away from everyone until she felt better.</p><p>Marcus placed his hand on her chin and lifted her face so she was forced to look at him. He was still smiling as he placed a small kiss on the tip of her nose.</p><p>“You worry too much about the people around you,” he admonished her.</p><p>“Yeah, no shit,” she muttered, trying to look away from him but failing spectacularly. </p><p>“It’s probably the thing I love most about you,” he continued, as though she hadn’t said anything at all.</p><p>Jesus Christ. He shouldn’t be allowed to say things like that.</p><p>“Marcus--”</p><p>“I don’t care. It’s true.” His gaze was torn between her eyes and her lips. He leaned even closer to her, his lips just a breath away from hers, “It’s intoxicating. Knowing that you care so much. About me. About your mom and Austin. How do you manage to care so much about everyone around you?” </p><p>His lips were softly touching hers as he spoke, but he was keeping himself just out of reach of a real kiss. Ginny didn’t know if he wanted her to respond to what he was saying. She could barely hear him over the rush she felt at being so close to him, her eyes closed and breathing heavy. </p><p>He moved away from her lips and she opened her eyes, confused. Why wasn’t he kissing her right now? </p><p>Once she was looking into his eyes, he spoke. “I promise you, I will tell you every time I go riding. I’ll let you know where I’m going. I’ll check in with you. I don’t want you to worry about me.”</p><p>He was looking at her so earnestly, stroking her face and reassuring her. It just felt right. Everything seemed to click into place for Ginny. This ridiculous, silly, beautiful boy would do anything for her and she would do anything for him. Even face her fears.</p><p>“I always worry about the people I love,” she said, slowly, testing out the words on her tongue. Feeling more confident, she continued, “I love you, Marcus Baker. I’ve loved you for a really long time.”</p><p>Marcus froze, looking like a deer in the headlights. He looked like he was too scared to say anything in case it came out wrong and scared her off. Ginny wanted to laugh out loud at his expression, but it didn’t feel right.</p><p>“I’m… not afraid to admit it. Really. You can acknowledge it. I love you,” she repeated, firmly. “I love you, and… I know that you can hurt me more than anyone else possibly could, but denying my feelings won’t stop me from being hurt. It won’t make me think about you any less than I do everyday. So. There. I love you. I’m in love with you. Probably forever. I never want to feel like this with anyone else.”</p><p>Marcus smiled, enjoying the fierce determination in her expression as she admitted, rather forcefully, that she was in love with him. </p><p>“Thank fuck,” he responded as he grabbed her, pulling her into a toe-curling kiss. Ginny sighed into his mouth and wrapped her arms around his neck, never wanting to let go. </p><p>Too soon, Marcus pulled back with a wide grin spreading across his face. “I love you so fucking much, Ginny Miller.” </p><p>An impish smile appeared on Ginny’s face as she replied, “Mmm, I guess I love you, too,” trying to sound as casual and unaffected as possible. “Just a little though.” </p><p>Ginny put her hands on Marcus’ chest to stop him from leaning in to kiss her again. There was something important she needed to say and she didn’t want it to come out wrong. Marcus looked down at her trying not to panic. She couldn’t be ready to take it back already, right? </p><p>Ginny took a deep breath. “Marcus.” Her tone was so serious and her expression looked severe. Marcus almost had the urge to laugh, but he knew Ginny would definitely punch him if he did. She looked like an angry little kitten. It was his favourite look on her.</p><p>“Marcus, I’ve… I’ve never loved anyone outside of my family. I’ve… never liked anyone outside my family. Okay? It’s… I don’t want to - you’re just.”</p><p>Fuck. This was sounding stupid.</p><p>“Wait. Lemme start again. Marcus--”</p><p>“Yes, Ginny?” he responded with an infuriating grin, leaning closer into her personal space. He was feeling a lot less nervous about what she was going to say after that god-awful start to her little speech.</p><p>Ginny let out a huff and slapped him on the chest. “Don’t interrupt me!”</p><p>“Oww, why are you so violent?!” he complained, rubbing his chest as though he were in real pain. Ginny glared at him, trying to fight a smile.</p><p>“You’re an idiot,” she said, but the way she said it, the way she looked at him, it sounded more like an ‘I love you’ than anything else. Marcus smiled and leaned in to kiss her on the nose.</p><p>“I’m <i> your </i> idiot,” he whispered, smiling.</p><p>“Yes. You are. And on that note,” she tried to continue, unphased, but she was honestly forgetting the entire reason for her speech. “Um. I don’t know if you could tell, but… I have some, slight difficulty letting people in. And… I don’t want you to think I don’t love you, just because it’s hard for me to say it. And… I probably won’t say it very much. Because.. it’s just.. hard. But I do. Love you, that is. And I don’t want you to forget that, even if I never say it again. But I will say it again! Just… not as much as you say it. But--” </p><p>Marcus had to put a stop to this painful little speech the only way he knew how to. He kissed her - softly, sweetly, trying to show her that he understood and she didn’t have to explain anything to him. “That was a lot of words!” he remarked as he pulled away. “Please, don’t hurt yourself. I know you love me. How could you not? I’m irresistible,” he declared in his best ‘cool guy’ voice.</p><p>Ginny shook her head, grinning up at him. “You’re such a dumbass,” she whispered, looking up at him.</p><p>“Yeah, yeah.” Marcus replied, leaning in for a kiss, but stopping right before their lips could meet. Ginny’s breath hitched. She couldn’t believe he still had this effect on her. After all this time. “I love you too,” he whispered against her lips, before crushing her to him.</p>
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<a name="section0051"><h2>51. Chapter 51</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“So… I think we should go out,” Marcus declared when they finally came up for air. Somehow, he had ended up sitting on Ginny’s bed with Ginny sitting on top of him, straddling his waist. </p><p>Ginny, not wanting so much talking when they could be kissing, tried to pull him back to her lips, but Marcus was determined. He laced his fingers in the hair at the back of her head, holding her close to him but far enough away that she wasn’t able to kiss him.</p><p>“Really, Ginny, I want to go out… with you,” he insisted.</p><p>“Mmmm, now?” she whined.</p><p>Marcus let out a quick breath, laughing at the girl in front of him. He leaned in and gave her a quick kiss on the lips, not allowing her to pull him into something deeper. The sounds she made when he kissed her… they were positively criminal. Her soft sighs and mewls, the way she pushed against him.</p><p>He was a fucking saint for not taking her right there and then.</p><p>“No, not right now,” he smiled into her lips, holding her tightly against himself, “I mean, like… in general. You know… hang out or something? Like as friends…” His lips were trailing along her neck, leaving light touches as he was talking.</p><p>It was therefore pretty easy for him to notice the way her entire body tensed when he mentioned the word ‘friends.’</p><p>“Friends?” </p><p>“Yeah, like, get to know each other. I know your darkest fears but I don’t know your favourite band, your favourite books... When we start kissing, I never want to stop. I think we should take it slow this time.”</p><p>“Mmm, interesting idea.” Ginny responded, breathily, as Marcus was still trailing kisses along her neck, even as he told her they needed to hang out as friends and get to know each other better, “Counter offer. We keep kissing, and take regular breaks to get to know each other,” she suggested with a giggle as he bit down on her neck.</p><p>“Minx,” he admonished, after hearing her suggestion, “I feel like you’re only interested in me for my body!” His hands were both under her shirt, gripping her waist tightly and pulling her against himself.</p><p>Marcus spoke of control, and building their friendship, but he was completely unable to deny anything this girl wanted. He needed her. More than he needed to breathe. He wanted every part of her: body, mind, soul. He wanted her all day and all night. He wanted to watch her sleep, which he knew was fucking creepy, but he couldn’t help it. Everything just felt lighter when she was around.</p><p>Ginny slowly, carefully extricated herself from him and moved to sit next to him on the bed. Marcus’ eyes followed her movements. Nooooo. This wasn’t what he wanted! Why was she out of reach? He reached to pull her back to him, but she turned to face him and crossed her legs, and he mirrored her actions.</p><p>Ginny smiled at the crestfallen look on his face, now that they were no longer attached at the lips. She leaned in to give him a peck on the lips, which turned into a soft, sweet, lingering kiss.</p><p>“You know I prefer your pretty face to your body,” she teased with a smile, leaning in for another kiss, “Especially your lips,” she kissed him again, “And your eyes.” </p><p>“You can have them,” he whispered as he leaned in for another kiss.</p><p>“Gross,” she teased with a smile, moving in to kiss him again, somehow ending up straddling him again with his hands on her ass. She pulled away from the kiss and tried to move back, but Marcus had learned from his mistake last time. He held on tight, refusing to let her go as he trailed kisses along her neck and her jawline.</p><p>“You know,” she reminded him, “You’re the one who said he wanted more talking and less kissing, and yet here we are…” </p><p>“Mmm, we have to take turns to talk so we can listen properly,” he responded, never fully removing his lips from her skin, “so, really. We can keep kissing AND talking at the same time. That’s just basic time management right there.”</p><p>Ginny held his head to that spot on her throat that sent pulses throughout her body, smiling as he continued to place light kisses and licks there. It felt so… Ugh. Soooooo good. She sighed and closed her eyes.</p><p>“Well, that is a very sensible decision, organising our time so well. So… how are we doing this? 20 questions? Truth or dare? Never have I ever?”</p><p>Marcus stopped kissing her neck and looked up in confusion. “What? No! What even--”</p><p>“Well, how am I supposed to know? I’ve never had friends before. I don’t know how people get to know each other!” Ginny grumbled, not liking the patronising look on Marcus’ face. He was the one coming up with this stupid idea.</p><p>“Aww, am I your first friend??” </p><p>“Fuck off. No. Max was my first friend…” god, that sounded pathetic. “Apart from Austin…” even better.</p><p>“Oh, that is so cute,” he teased, pouting when she moved away from him and gave him evils. </p><p>“It’s not CUTE. It’s badass and intimidating that I can survive for so long without any friends.” she growled, moving out of his lap and crossing her arms.</p><p>“No, don’t! Yes. It’s VERY badass to survive for so long without friends,” Marcus pleaded, trying to appease the prickly girl in front of him. “What did you do before? At the schools where you didn’t have friends?” he asked gently, genuinely curious.</p><p>Ginny smiled, thinking back to her simpler times. Wow. She never thought she’d miss the days of sitting alone at lunch time with no one to talk to…</p><p>“I mostly read. Anything I could get my hands on. And I listened to music a lot, to make sure no one tried to start a conversation. I have these huge noise cancelling headphones my dad got for me…” she trailed off with a smile. “Anyway--”</p><p>“What music did you listen to?”</p><p>“Huh? Oh. It depended on my mood. My mom and I spent so much time creating playlists for every possible mood. Some based on the books I was reading - melancholy, ‘my favourite character is in danger,’ ‘some mad shit is about to go down,’ that sort of thing. It was a lot of soundtrack and video game music, to be honest… What about you? Um, favourite music?”</p><p>Marcus was fiddling with his phone briefly before the soft sounds of an acoustic guitar started playing through Ginny’s speakers. “I’m pretty similar, actually. Pick my music based on my mood. Usually I just like something chill without any lyrics I have to think too hard about. I got really into french music for a while - can’t speak a word of it, so it just sounded like calming sounds rather than words.”</p><p>Ginny leaned back, lying on her bed, looking up at the ceiling. “I like it. Makes me feel… peaceful.” she sighed and closed her eyes, getting lost in the soft melody. It sounded familiar enough to feel like home, even though she had definitely never heard it before.</p><p>“It’s… how I feel when I think about you,” he said as he lay on the bed next to her. “It’s just like… this melody I can’t get out of my head, but to me, it feels like us. Like you.”</p><p>Ginny smiled, looking up at him. How were they supposed to be so close to each other without ripping each other’s clothes off? Especially when he said things like that. Fuck, she needed to control herself and he was not making it easy.</p>
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<a name="section0052"><h2>52. Chapter 52</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Ginny cleared her throat as she sat up, turning to look at Marcus as he lay on his back with his eyes closed. “You never answered my question earlier. Favourite music?” </p><p>Marcus groaned, “Ughhh nope. Too vague! What does that even mean - “favourite music?” Favourite genre? Favourite artist? Favourite song? I can’t answer that! It’s like asking me to choose my favourite oxygen particle for breathing!”</p><p>“Woooowwwww. The drama on this one,” she countered. “Fine. I’ll give you a scenario and you have to choose the appropriate song that you’d listen to as your… soundtrack or mood music or whatever.”</p><p>“Interesting…”</p><p>“Okay. We’ll start off easy. You’re in line, in your favourite coffee shop, ready to get your drink aaaand… someone pushes in front of you. What’s your song?” </p><p>“That is… oddly specific.”</p><p>“Too vague, too specific? Come on, gimme an answer!”</p><p>“I’m thinking! You can’t rush a decision like this.”</p><p>“I’ve already got two songs. Like straight up. Easy decision.”</p><p>“Well, did they seem apologetic? Or like they were in a rush? I need more context! There are so many songs to capture this mood!” He was stalling and Ginny could tell. “I need to look at my Spotify playlists..” </p><p>“Noo! First song that pops into your head! Come onnnn Marcus, this was an easy one!”</p><p>“Tell me your songs. I’m blanking. I’ll do better for the next one!” He put an adorable little puppy dog face on and Ginny couldn’t resist. She grabbed her phone and ‘Move Bitch’ by Disturbing the Peace started playing on the speakers.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Marcus laughed out loud, “Alright fine, yeah that was a good one. What was your other song?”</p><p>The dulcet tones of an acoustic guitar started playing through the speakers, and Marcus was confused at the romantic tone of the song. When the lyrics started playing, he couldn’t stop the laugh that burst out of his mouth.</p><p><i> Why you bein a dickhead for? Stop being a dickhead. </i> </p><p>“What?! Who is this and why do you know them?” He laughed, unable to believe that someone ACTUALLY made a song about someone else being a dickhead.</p><p><i> Why you bein a dickhead for? You’re just fuckin up the situation. </i> </p><p>“It’s Kate Nash. She’s British. My mom loves her. And Lily Allen. They’re from the 90s or something. Pretty obscure, but their songs are hilarious. Alright, next one, since you completely FAILED at this one.” </p><p>Marcus groaned, trying to think of every song he could remember. Why was this so hard? </p><p>“Mmmm… Okay. You’re feeling really sad, and you’re sitting alone outside. Then a stranger comes and gives you a freshly baked cookie to try to cheer you up. Song choice?” </p><p>“What!? When would that ever happen?” Marcus complained, completely thrown off by the ridiculous scenario.</p><p>“The particulars don’t matter. It’s all about how you’d <i> feel </i>  if a stranger went out of their way to try to make you feel better when you were feeling like shit. Without expecting anything in return. They just wanted to make you feel better.” she coaxed, gently. Ginny and Georgia had been playing this game since she was a kid, so she was at an unfair advantage, she supposed.</p><p>Their spotify playlists were literally named after moods like “the world isn’t AS shit as I thought it was” and “Fuck those assholes, they don’t know shit.” They spent entire evenings just sitting together and finding songs to express how they felt. She fought a blush at the memory of her recently created ‘Untitled’ playlist consisting of Dashboard Confessional, Taylor Swift, and The Beach Boys. Ginny knew exactly what those songs made her feel and think and she refused to acknowledge how often she found herself listening to it. </p><p>Marcus smirked and grabbed the phone while Ginny was lost in her thoughts. ‘May it Be’ by Enya started playing on the speakers and Ginny’s expression of pure shock was totally worth the shame of having revealed his love for Enya.</p><p>“Ohhhhh shiiiiiiit. Enya?? Bringing out the BIG GUNS already? Wow. I have no words. I mean - WOW. Lord of the Rings soundtrack and Enya - I’m getting hopeful feels, I’m getting magic and wonder, I’m getting peace and angels. I don’t think this song choice can be topped??” </p><p>
  
</p><p>“You realise this tells us nothing about our favourite music, right?” he responded, chuckling at her excitement over his song choice.</p><p>“Errrrr. How do you figure that? How many teenage boys are wise enough - nay, SPIRITUAL enough, to pull Enya out of their back pocket like that?? I think you might be my actual soul mate.”  </p><p>Marcus lay back on the bed, looking both smug and proud of this turn of events. Ginny lay by his side, cuddling up close to him as they listened to the queue of Enya songs that followed their previous song choice, both lost in their own thoughts. All Marcus could think about was how natural it felt to have Ginny’s hands in his as they lay together in bed. They didn’t even need to say anything. Moments like this were just… perfect.</p><p>
  
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  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Um. Okay guys, so I'm just majorly stalling at this point, because I cannot FOR THE LIFE OF ME think of a date they can go on and I'm low-key panicking a little.</p><p>I've just... never been a date person?? I don't like going out specifically with the intention of being romanced?? I just feel really awkward about the entire premise?? </p><p>But I need these two to go on an adorable date!! Please, for the LOVE OF GOD, help me. I need you to outline a really SPECIFIC DATE and how these two beautiful babies would behave on the date and how it would be cute. Because LITERALLY if I write a date scene, it will be like "They went to a restaurant and ate the romantic food and did the spaghetti kiss like in lady and the tramp." </p><p>That's it. That's the extent of my knowledge about dating. That scene from Lady and the Tramp.</p><p>If you don't help me, I SWEAR TO GOD I will post a chapter entitled "date scene" and it will be that ONE LINE.</p><p>Please. I am desperate. As you can see, I'm not above BEGGING for help.</p>
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<a name="section0053"><h2>53. Chapter 53</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Marcus Baker was going to be the death of Ginny Miller. They had discussed boundaries and taking things slow, deciding that they wouldn’t have too many public displays of affection where people could see. Mostly because they both struggled to stop things from going too far once they started, and no one needed to see them going at it in public.</p>
<p>Ginny had assumed that that would mean they’d spend more time together in private, but Marcus seemed to be completely avoiding being alone with her. When they were at her house, he always wanted to hang out downstairs with Austin or Zion, and Ginny rarely went to his house to spend time with him alone. Max was absolutely adamant that Ginny was <i> her </i> guest when they were in the Baker household and Marcus was not allowed to steal her. </p>
<p>So this meant that Ginny was walking around like a ticking time bomb ready to explode. It’s not like all those… feelings… had just disappeared now that they decided to tone down their exhibitionism. In fact, it seemed to make it so much worse.</p>
<p>Usually, Ginny was the one stopping things from progressing with Marcus for some reason or other. </p>
<p>But, oh how the tables had turned.</p>
<p>They spent so much time in the library together - but they were actually studying the whole time. Marcus was vastly superior to any other study partner that Ginny had ever had. Granted, the only other person she had ever studied with was Max and she wasn’t too bad aside from her frequent movement and/or sugar breaks, but even when she had been paired with other classmates for projects, none of them were of any use.</p>
<p>Marcus was easily able to pull his own weight, which Ginny found pretty astonishing considering the fact that everyone talked about him as though he were allergic to reading. It was surprisingly pleasant to work with someone who challenged her thinking and enjoyed academic debate. </p>
<p>He never got heated or made things personal - he just calmly stated his opinions and pointed out flaws in her arguments until they found a middle ground to agree on. Sometimes, he even admitted to being wrong and agreeing with Ginny once she was able to argue her points thoroughly.</p>
<p>It was such a fucking turn on.</p>
<p>They were partnered in basically all their classes together and they just really seemed to click. They worked so well together - especially in Chemistry. Actually, if anything, Ginny knew that he spent more time patiently explaining the concepts and practicals in Chemistry than ever, and she was understanding it so much better as a result. </p>
<p>Despite their great professional relationship, Marcus seemed to be making it increasingly difficult for Ginny to resist jumping him in public spaces. He regularly forgot the concept of personal space, constantly reaching over to stroke her neck, legs, and shoulders when they sat near each other. Whenever they were in the library, he tended to loom, and stay unnecessarily close to her. </p>
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<p>Ginny had started to dread searching for books, because he would always be standing so close to her, his full body pressed against her back as she reached for whichever book was alluding her. He seemed to take pleasure in watching her struggle for a while before reaching up with ease to grab the wretched book, slowly, teasingly bringing it down to her level, and then walking back to their table as though nothing had happened.  </p>
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<p>Ginny was constantly flustered and hot. Every pair of knickers that she owned had been soaked through while they were ‘getting to know each other as friends.’ She had worn down the batteries to her favourite vibrator twice already, and was thinking of buying one that was rechargeable. Spending time with Marcus but not being allowed to fuck him was pure torture. </p>
<p>Perhaps worst of all was the excessive hand-fondling that Marcus seemed to be so insistent upon. It started off fairly innocuously - their fingers would wander over to each other while they were making notes at the same table, or under the desks in class. </p>
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<p> Marcus was a lefty, so his right hand was always free to explore Ginny absentmindedly while he was working. </p>
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<p>His fingertips would trace the shape of her hands, stroking patterns on her inner wrist and up her arm, sending tingles through her entire body. </p>
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<p> His knuckles would brush gently across hers when he was reading, or he’d lace their fingers together and unlace them periodically, constantly reminding Ginny of his presence without saying a word.</p>
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<p>Sometimes, if her hand was resting casually on her seat or on her thigh while they worked, he’d stroke the area of her thigh around her hand, leaving tingles running all the way up and down Ginny’s  body. </p>
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<p> It was completely distracting and drove her wild, but any time she tried to push his hands in a more pleasurable direction, he eased back to stroking somewhere more innocent. It was infuriating.</p>
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<p>It got to the stage that Ginny couldn’t even look at his hands without blushing. The way they were constantly in movement when he was surrounded by other people. His long fingers stroking up and down the string of his hoodie or tapping on a table when he was restless. When she wasn’t near to him, he seemed to stroke his fingers along his own palm absentmindedly, softly caressing his own skin while he talked or listened to the people around him.</p>
<p>Ginny often found herself staring at his hands, noticing their little movements and ticks. It was becoming an obsession that was surprisingly erogenous. Whenever he caught her looking at his hands, she blushed like a virgin and looked away. He never smirked or teased her for it, either. He’d just smile or leave an innocent kiss to the top of her head, ignoring the furious flush on her cheeks and upper chest.</p>
<p>She didn’t even know if he was doing it on purpose. That was really the worst part. He didn’t seem to even notice how distracted she was when they worked together, despite the fact that it was possibly the most arousing thing that she had ever experienced. Yet, he seemed completed unphased by their constant touching and caressing.</p>
<p>He really was going to kill her with frustration.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0054"><h2>54. Chapter 54</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Ginny reached her limit after two days, which, personally, she was really proud of.</p><p>Two entire days of sitting next to Marcus for 8 hours every day at school and keeping her hands and lips and tongue to herself while he stroked and caressed and rubbed against her in the most sinfully innocent ways. </p><p>She didn’t want to blow up at him or making him feel bad about it, but she was tired of being touched and titillated all day, then going home to take care of her problems on her own. She had worn down all the batteries in the house and had been forced to order a rechargeable vibrator in shame. Enough was enough, and frankly, her clit was starting to get numb from all the pressure she had been putting on it.</p><p>Usually, Ginny would have just pulled Marcus into a steamy kiss and let their natural instincts do the rest of the work; but for some awful reason, Marcus was really adamant that they wouldn’t do anything sexual until some undisclosed time of his choosing. Any time their kisses started to last more than 5 seconds (and Ginny had started to actually TIME IT to see where his limit was and it was genuinely 5 seconds on the dot, every. Single. Time.) Marcus pulled away with a smile, leaving a gentle peck on Ginny’s lips as he disentangled their hands and got back to whatever they were doing before they started kissing.</p><p>Ginny Miller was beyond frustrated. She was getting desperate. So, she did the one thing that she had managed to avoid for essentially her entire life so far.</p><p>She asked her mom to take her clothes shopping. </p><p>Now, what you need to understand is that Ginny HATED clothes shopping, with a passion. Unless she ran out of t-shirts and needed to go out and buy a specific replacement, she avoided it as much as she could. When Amazon had started selling clothes online, Ginny had believed that she would never have to set foot in a clothing shop ever again for the rest of her life. She didn’t want to go into the changing rooms and try things on and browse and wander and UGH she was getting bored just THINKING about it.</p><p>But, something had to change. And it needed to be subtle. She couldn’t just start walking around in mini skirts and no panties. Even <i> Marcus </i> would be able to realise something was off if she suddenly appeared in school half naked.</p><p>No. She was going to change up her look only ever so slightly. The weather was getting colder, so Ginny figured she could start rocking the Jumper Dress with leggings look, which still kept her covered up, but was much cuter and more form fitting than her usual look.</p><p>And… she wanted to buy some boots. No heels. Just… thigh high boots. To go with her jumper dresses. It was a look she saw her mom rocking every autumn and winter and she looked effortlessly flawless every time. So, Ginny was going to go out, buy 5 jumper dresses, 5 pairs of leggings or thigh high socks, and one new pair of boots. She was shopping with a very specific image in mind and she would not be deterred. </p><p>Unfortunately, Georgia’s excitement over her daughter’s willingness to FINALLY go shopping, like she had always wanted to do, was not something that Ginny had planned for. What initially started as a quick mission to find 5 different versions of the exact same look turned into what could only be described as a hellish nightmare.</p><p>Her mom. Wanted. To go. Underwear shopping.</p><p>Together.</p><p>With the panties and the thongs and the bras and the lace and the silk and Ginny wanted to DIE.</p><p>Until she saw how fucking HOT she looked in matching underwear?? </p><p>It was like being reborn as a new, sensual goddess. She had bras that actually fit her tiny, little boobs. The absolutely stunning shop assistant who was graciously helping them to outfit Ginny’s new underwear wardrobe, was incredibly helpful. Her knowledge about different body types and how to make girls feel sexy even if they had no boobs worth mentioning was OUT OF THIS WORLD.</p><p>Instead of cottony, padded monstrosities that did nothing to help Ginny’s body image issues, the girl suggested that Ginny go for lighter, lacy little numbers with no wiring. It was like wearing a sexy sports bra, giving Ginny all the comfort and support she (barely) needed, while highlighting her feminine physique.</p><p>She had spent so long praying that her boobs would grow like Georgia’s (and stuffing her padded bras to make it LOOK like she had boobs…) that she never even considered the idea that small boobs could look sexy too. Lace and silk and velvet were her new best friends.</p><p>These bras were sexy, they were soft, they were comfy, and best of all - THEY CAME WITH MATCHING PANTIES. Ginny was positively brimming with excitement and wanted to wear all of her new underwear IMMEDIATELY.</p><p>When they left the shops with their hands filled with bags of goodies, Ginny couldn’t stop the pleased sigh from escaping her lips. “I had no idea how much I worried about how tiny my boobs are until we got me underwear that makes me love my tiny boobs. Isn’t that crazy? It’s like this massive weight has been lifted off my shoulders. I thought I was the only person in the world with tiny boobs but that’s just NOT true.” </p><p>She looked pointedly at Georgia’s chest and continued, “I blame you. Those things are ridiculous.”</p><p>Georgia let out a mock gasp of horror, “Don’t shame me for having big boobs!” she cried in faux-outrage. “I can’t help it any more than you can help the size of your boobs!” she finished with a teasing smile, poking her daughter in the side and laughing as she squirmed away.</p><p>“I am sorry that you’d been worrying so much about that, though, Peach. Why didn’t you say anything?” she asked seriously, quietly, not wanting to upset her moody teenage daughter.</p><p>“Well, I didn’t even realise I was so worried about it, you know? It was just… like, one of the million things that played in my mind, making me worry that I was some hideous, unlovable troll. What was I going to say? ‘Hey mom, my boobs are tiny and I think that’s why I’ll never have a boyfriend. Can I have a boob job?’ I mean, seriously. I didn’t think anything could be done about it… But now, even though no one’s going to notice that I’m wearing sexy underwear under my clothes… I’ll know it? So, I won’t be worrying about having bigger boobs because, let’s be honest, my lacy bra would look AWFUL on your giant tits,” she was grinning from ear to ear, loving the envious look on her mom’s face.</p><p>“That is true. I’ll never be able to borrow your bras anymore, now that they’re so perfectly tailored to your body,” she admitted with a forlorn sigh. </p><p>Ginny laughed and launched towards her mom, giving her a huge hug in the middle of the shopping centre. “Thanks, mom,” she whispered with a smile.</p><p>“Anytime, Peach. This was MUCH cheaper than the boob job I was planning to get you for your birthday!” she exclaimed after they parted, pleased to see her daughter so happy. She looked confident in her body for the first time in her life, and if spending a couple hundred dollars on underwear would boost her teenage daughter’s self-esteem, it would be well worth every penny.</p>
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<a name="section0055"><h2>55. Chapter 55</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The next day at school was a Friday, and it was the perfect time for Ginny to begin her journey into seducing her stupid… yikes. She didn’t know what to refer to Marcus as in her mind. <i> Definitely </i> not boyfriend. Lover? Yuck. Boy toy? Maybe - he was just under a month younger than she was! Neighbour with benefits?</p><p>Ugh.</p><p>Her person. She’d just refer to him as her person.</p><p>So, Ginny was ready to begin the journey of seducing her stupid… person. But she needed to be subtle! She couldn’t walk in with baggy jeans and a baggy t-shirt one day, then sexy figure hugging jumper dress with thigh boots the next. That would draw too much unwanted attention.</p><p>She decided she’d start small. Baggy jeans, ankle boots, and one of the more loosely fitted jumper dresses. Comfy, and still <i> her, </i> but just a bit more… girly. Not to mention, the turquoise lacy bra and knickers she was wearing underneath to make her feel like an absolute GODDESS.</p><p>When Ginny got dressed that morning, she spent a good 5 minutes just staring at herself in the mirror, twirling and posing in her underwear. She didn’t really even CARE what she wore over this underwear. Underneath all those layers of warmth and clothing, Ginny would always know that she looked like a sexual minx. In her mind’s eye, she was walking around in nothing but her bra and panties, and she was GLORIOUS.</p><p>“No! We did not spend all that time shopping for outfits, just for you to completely ruin the entire look with those hideous jeans. Take them off so I can burn them now, or I will burn them while they are still on your body!” Was the reaction Ginny got from her loving mother when she came down for breakfast.</p><p>“Awww, thanks mom! You look beautiful, too.” She responded with a simpering smile. Nothing was going to bring her mood down. Not when she had the smooooth feeling of lace caressing her lady bits. Ooooh, imagine how smooth it would feel if she WAXED her lady bits instead of shaving? </p><p>Food for thought.</p><p>“You know I think you’re the most beautiful girl in the world!” her mom shot back quickly, and Ginny rolled her eyes good-naturedly, “But that outfit is hideous. You’re totally swamped by the baggy jumper AND baggy jeans combo. One of them has got to go. Am I right Austin?” </p><p>“Yeah!” Austin agreed without looking up from his breakfast. Traitor.</p><p>“Mom, I can’t go in today with a completely different look. People will stare at me and… talk. I want to transition smoothly without a big fuss,” she shuddered, thinking back to Harry and Ron’s reaction to Hermione at the Yule Ball. If Ginny could go her entire life without that kind of bullshit happening to her, she’d die happy.</p><p>Georgia looked at her pityingly, then took mercy on her poor, confused teenage daughter. “Oh, sweetie. Ok, here’s what we’ll do. I’ve got some jeans that are not exactly tight fitting but won’t look so… big, when paired with the jumper. Everything else can stay the same. Will you change the jeans for me, so I can burn the ones you’re currently wearing?”  </p><p>And that was how Ginny ended up strutting to the Bakers’ house, ready to walk to school with Marcus. Even though she had barely changed her aesthetic, she relished the brief look of surprise and appreciation on Marcus’ face when he took in her appearance. He seemed to be blushing at whatever thought had popped into his head after seeing her and Ginny smirked internally. </p><p>Ah, poor Marcus. He had no idea what she had in store for him. </p><p>He kissed her on the head and called out a goodbye to his mom before grabbing her hand and beginning his daily ritual of torturing the fuck out of Ginny with his light strokes and touches.</p><p>
  
</p><p>You’d think that she would be used to it after experiencing it constantly for days, but there was just something about the way he touched her, paired with the way he looked at her while talking to her with his sexy deep voice that… fuck. Yeah. It was difficult to concentrate at all, really. </p><p>
  
</p><p>Today’s walk was going to be a little different, though. Ginny had decided to beat him at his own game, even if he didn’t know he was playing. When they were about halfway to school, approaching the tree that was bent at the perfect angle for Marcus to lean into Ginny while kissing and grinding against her, Ginny slowed their approach.</p><p>“Marcus, I- I’ve really enjoyed walking and talking with you, these past few days,” she said, shyly, slowly. She looked up at him and breathed heavily while staring at his mouth. His eyes went straight to her lips before slowly trailing down to her chest and back up to her eyes, quickly.</p><p>Jackpot. </p><p>“Yeah, me too,” he said shiftily, swallowing hard and leaning into her. Ginny smiled and walked a little further ahead, slowly getting closer to the tree.</p><p>“I’m really surprised at how much we have in common,” she continued as she stopped right in front of the tree. “I feel like I’ve known you for my whole life. It’s so easy to talk to you, share my thoughts. I don’t feel embarrassed, even talking about things that usually make me uncomfortable.” she whispered up at him, forcing him to lean closer to he could hear what she was saying. His breathing was getting harder and she could feel the puffs of air leaving his mouth and closing in on her lips.</p><p>He closed her eyes and breathed heavily, letting out a shaky sigh. God, she wasn’t even exaggerating at this point. This was the longest they had been standing close to each other in… weeks, probably. It felt so good to have him this close to her again, looking at her like he wanted to pounce.</p><p>She couldn’t let him pull away this time - she couldn’t scare him off. She needed him to think that this conversation needed to happen right here, by this tree.</p><p>“Really?” He breathed, “Like what?” he asked, referring to her talking about things that usually make her uncomfortable.</p><p>“Well,” she paused and looked to the side, really trying to play on the ‘I’m so embarrassed, I can only talk to you about these things’ vibe. “Now’s probably not the time to go into it, actually. And we need to head to school. We can talk about it another time?” she rushed out, feigning embarrassment and moving as though she were prepared to walk away from this spot.</p><p>Marcus grabbed her by the waist to stop her from walking away and she had to hide the ridiculous grin that appeared on her face. Hopefully, it would just further feed the idea that she was reluctant to talk.</p><p>“We have time now, if you want? We always get to school so early when we walk, I’d say we can stop for 20 minutes and still get there on time,” he suggested, his voice deep and raspy, even as he tried to reassure her. How, the fuck, was he controlling himself so rigidly? It’s not like he was unaffected by their closeness. He looked just as frustrated as Ginny was feeling. It made NO sense.</p><p>He was looking at her so earnestly, begging her to share an uncomfortable truth with him, that Ginny was almost tempted to share with him the secret she had been holding onto for months. The thing she couldn’t talk to anyone about… not even her mom. Their connection really was something she had never felt before.</p><p>It would be so easy to just… say it. Out loud. Admit what had happened, how she had been feeling. His eyes were so open, trusting. He looked like he would never judge her or try to make her feel bad. Ginny didn’t think he would blame her for it either… but, something just told her that it would change things.</p><p>He was already so hesitant to be physical with her… she could only imagine how much <i> more </i> closed off he might become if he knew. </p><p>
  
</p><p>No.</p><p>She couldn’t tell him. It wouldn’t change anything anyway. Kenny was dead. He wasn’t going to be able to hurt her, or anyone else, ever again. </p><p>Ginny never needed to talk about it. That time had passed and she needed to stop thinking about it. She needed to move on and continue ignoring it as she had been doing this whole time.</p><p>She wasn’t afraid of sex, and she had proved it time and time again. She had taken control in her relationship with Marcus. They did things when she wanted it or not at all.</p><p>It was fine. She was fine.</p><p>The moment passed and she really <i> did </i> want to go to school now. </p><p>She stepped away from Marcus with a soft smile. “No, really. It’s fine. Let’s go to school,” she said as she held his hand in hers. </p><p>
  
</p><p>The rest of their walk was more subdued as they talked about everything and nothing. Ginny didn’t even feel disappointed that her genius plan had backfired so spectacularly. They had shared a moment, and they were connecting, even if they weren’t screwing like rabbits. She was starting to think that maybe she could understand why Marcus wanted them to ease off with the physical stuff. It really was great, talking to him, hearing his dumb thoughts, as well as his surprisingly insightful ones. </p><p>Marcus wasn’t usually a man of many words, but when it was just the two of them, Ginny got a glimpse into the depths of his thoughts - things he didn’t share with anyone else. </p><p>Seeing him speak so freely, so enthusiastically - well, she could see how that <i> might </i> be more precious than a few orgasms.</p><p>
  
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<a name="section0056"><h2>56. Chapter 56</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>ALRIGHT GUYS.</p><p>I spent all day watching porn and making GIFs for this chapter soooooooooooooooooooo... if you don't like porn, I suggest you skip this one because there is LITERALLY no point to it, other than me writing smut for fun.</p><p>Well, and avoiding my work. But I do that all day every day. My terrible life choices won't impact me majorly in the future when I have to return to work though, right??</p><p>Sigh.</p><p>Enjoy, or whatever.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>By the end of first period, Ginny was already seriously regretting the fact that she hadn’t followed through on her plan to get Marcus to make her come on the way into school.</p><p>The boy was BEYOND ridiculous in his teasing touches, and Ginny had to sit with him in basically all of their lessons now. With all the extra assignments and studying that they had been doing together since the beginning of the year, Marcus had apparently earned the right to move up into her AP classes, and now they were together every. Minute. Of the day. </p><p>Most girls would probably be ecstatic to be able to spend so much time with their … person. Ginny probably would have been, too! If her feelings weren’t so god damned confusing all the time.</p><p>Marcus had reacted exactly as she wanted him to when he saw her wearing her cute, new jumper. She could see that he was into it, and that he just wanted to rip it off her and ravish her immediately. </p><p>
  
</p><p>When they were walking and talking, he couldn’t keep his hands off her, and his voice was all sexy and he was getting all close to her and tempting her to jump him right there in the middle of the street.</p><p>And YET.</p><p>When they were in school, he left those same teasing touches all along her neck and her ears, and her shoulders, and along her arms, and her thighs, and her back and… UGH, it was a lot of touching. But he was having NO reaction whatsoever. </p><p>He was touching and stroking and squeezing and grabbing every bit of Ginny that his hands could reach, but his breathing never seemed to get any heavier, he never seemed to be having trouble concentrating, and his cock was NEVER hard. Ginny knew, because she kept sneaking peeks at it whenever she felt like she was ready to explode. </p><p>She didn’t know exactly what a hard cock would look like in jeans, but she imagined that it would stick out fairly obviously, and whenever she looked down at his crotch, there was no sign of movement, or hardness, or anything poking out where it shouldn’t be.</p><p>It was maddening! Ginny was fairly sure that she had completely ruined her brand new lace panties and decided then and there that she would not be wasting her nice underwear on school days. She had absolutely soaked through them within the first ten minutes of sitting next to stupid, handsy Marcus and was now wishing that she had brought a spare pair of plain cotton knickers to wear. </p><p>It got so bad, she had to periodically escape to the toilets so she could shove a load of tissue down her pants, just to soak up all the excess moisture. And yet, MARCUS, was sitting there, fresh as a fucking daisy, with no idea the torture he was putting her through. She spent second period stewing in her anger and plotting his downfall as he continued to leave light, teasing touches along her inner thigh.</p><p>After regrouping in the bathroom and giving herself a little pep talk, Ginny was happy to commence with Operation: Get Laid. She primped and preened in front of the mirror for a few moments, before going out to join their friends at Berry Tree.</p><p>When Marcus moved to stand behind her and wrapped his hands around her waist, Ginny reached up to place a not-so-innocent kiss on the base of his neck and smiled up at him in greeting. </p><p>
  
</p><p>She laced their fingers together as they stood with the rest of the group, letting him leave his hand on her hip, right above the entrance to her jeans.</p><p>
  
</p><p>It would have been <i> so </i> easy to reach down and force his hand to go where she needed it most - but Ginny was patient. She knew she might be able to do that once, but he would avoid standing with her like this in the future if she tried.</p><p>So, she stood and chatted and laughed while pretending to ignore the feeling of Marcus’ breath on the back of her neck. At some point, she and Marcus had apparently agreed to meet the rest of the gang at Brody’s house to hang out on Saturday. </p><p>Ginny hadn’t been paying attention at all, because she had finally noticed a hardness pressing against her that she definitely had not seen when she snuck a look earlier. She tried to subtly press back against it to make sure it was what she thought it was and not something stupid like an old iPod, and her eyes had widened when he let out a soft little groan in response.</p><p>Fucking hell.</p><p>Marcus Baker was hard. And his hard cock was pressing into Ginny while she was talking to her friends and she wasn’t allowed to react in any way that would bring attention to them.</p><p>Did he know that she knew? </p><p>
  
</p><p>Once she had become aware of the hardness pressing against her, it was like her entire body became hypersensitive - noticing every touch and every sound and every breath coming from behind her. The way his hand was squeezing hers in time to the very light but now extremely noticeable grinding of his hips into her back.</p><p>The way his other hand rubbed light little circles into the skin just above her hips in a way that she wished he would rub on her clit. She wanted to close her eyes and get lost in the sensations, but she couldn’t because she was surrounded by people. </p><p>
  
</p><p>Was he hard every time he touched her like this? </p><p>Was he doing this on purpose?</p><p>Ginny had no idea, but she wanted to turn around and pounce on him, audience or no. </p><p>She was saved from making that traumatising mistake by the bell ringing to signal the beginning of the next lesson. Marcus left a light little kiss on the top of her head and started leading them towards their next class as though he hadn’t just spent five minutes dry humping her to oblivion in front of all of their friends.</p><p>WAS HE INSANE?!</p><p>Ginny looked down at his crotch and STILL saw no visible sign of the erection that she KNEW was in there somewhere. She walked to her next class in a daze, having no idea what she was supposed to think or feel, but definitely knowing that she was randy as shit and needed to come before she exploded.</p><p>As they entered the Chemistry classroom, Marcus was preparing to lead Ginny to their usual spot near the front, but she pulled him into the secluded table at the back. She knew that this lesson was going to be continuing work on the research project that she and Marcus had been paired together to work on, but there was no way she would be able to concentrate on getting anything productive done.</p><p>They were way ahead of everyone else, anyway, so they could afford to fool around for one lesson.</p><p>Their teacher briefly instructed them to get started on the group project and then left them their own devices for the rest of the lesson. The classroom was noisy as the students collected laptops for researching and watching videos, and no one was paying them any mind.</p><p>Ginny and Marcus already knew what their project was going to be, and were mainly in the previous research/ evidence-gathering stage, which involved a lot of reading and note-taking. Marcus, already in the middle of making notes on one particular journal article, got out his books and started working immediately, running his hand along Ginny’s thigh absentmindedly.</p><p>Ginny, on the other hand, was still reeling from her earlier realisation that boys could have secret boners that did not stick out of their pants, even though that was what she was sure SHOULD have happened if there was a large appendage sticking out of their crotch. </p><p>She got out her notes and loaded up the next journal article, still in a daze. When she felt Marcus’ hand on her thigh, she pressed her lips together and clenched her teeth, trying to ignore the sudden rush of wetness she could feel leaking out of her.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Enough.</p><p>She would not put up with this anymore.</p><p>She placed her hand on top of Marcus’ to stop his movements, and then gently removed the hand from her person.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Unphased, Marcus kept writing his notes before returning his hand to Ginny again mere moments later. Ginny turned to glare at him, furious, but he wasn’t even looking up at her. </p><p>
  
</p><p> He was still diligently reading his article and making his notes with an adorable look of concentration on his face. His eyebrows were furrowed and his eyes were flicking across the article, clearly seeing something that didn’t make sense to him.</p><p>God, he was such a nerd. Ginny should not have been so turned on to see him so focused on his reading. She pressed her thighs together and squeezed periodically to try to relieve some pressure.</p><p>Then she was struck by a purely genius idea.</p><p>While Marcus’ hand was busy rubbing light touches on her thighs, Ginny decided to give him a taste of his own medicine. </p><p>
  
</p><p>Pretending to be concentrating fully on the article in front of her, Ginny started just copying what was written word-for-word so it would look like she was making notes and thinking about what she was reading.</p><p>Instead, while her left hand was busy writing, she slowly and subtly moved her right hand onto Marcus’ thigh and started rubbing him gently. </p><p>
  
</p><p>When she saw that he wasn’t going to immediately stop her from rubbing his thigh, Ginny decided to push her luck, just a bit. All she had intended to do was to find out where he had been hiding his hardon earlier. She was just going to… innocently… rub up and down until she could find out where it was.</p><p>
  
</p><p>She was <i> going to <i> stop as soon as she found it… she was just… curious.</i></i></p><p>
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    <i>She hadn’t expected Marcus to thrust his hips up towards her hand and let out the softest little groan while still looking like he was concentrating on the journal article in front of him.</i>
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    <i>Ginny wouldn’t be able to stop herself if Marcus wasn’t stopping her. Now that she had felt him, now that she knew that he wasn’t completely… unaffected… she wouldn’t be able to get enough until she was riding him and screaming as she came.</i>
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    <i>Just feeling how hard he was - nnnggggh - was making her hornier, and she couldn’t squeeze her thighs together hard enough to get the friction she really needed.</i>
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    <i>Luckily, Marcus, gentleman that he was, refused to let her continue unsatisfied. His hand squeezed her thigh again, moving higher and higher until he could stroke her soaking wet pussy over her clothes. Ginny was sure that she had soaked through her panties and her jeans, but she was past the point of caring.</i>
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    <i>Finally, FINALLY, having his fingers right where she needed them felt so good, Ginny wanted to scream. She let out a little gasp and closed her eyes, biting her lip to stop any additional sounds. The atmosphere in the classroom was so busy that no one noticed the sound of her breathy gasp, but she was sure they would get some attention if she started screaming the place down.</i>
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    <i>Unable to take the soft touches any longer, Ginny reached her hand into Marcus’ pants and finally got her hands on the thing she had been missing for so long. Marcus’ cock was hot and hard in her hand. </i>
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    <i>When she started to stroke it lightly underneath his boxers, he let out the fucking sexiest sound she had ever heard - some kind of mixture between a grunt, groan and a growl. </i></i></p><p>
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</p><p><i><i> It was hot and Ginny couldn’t resist looking over at him to see the expression on his face. She was not disappointed. His eyes were closed and his head was bent forward, but she could still see the rapture on his face, even if no one else could.</i>
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    <i>Ginny wanted to climb on top of him and impale herself on his shaft. She wanted to sit in his lap and ride his cock until neither of them could move anymore. Gods, at this point, she’d even settle to just be able to reach over and pull him into a kiss.</i>
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    <i>Her clit was so stiff and hard, she was afraid it would explode. Marcus was rubbing her so hard between her legs, and Ginny brought down her remaining free hand to join his, completely giving up on the pretence of doing any work until she came. </i>
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    <i>Her hand was still rubbing along his cock as he stroked her, bringing them both closer and closer to orgasm. Ginny could feel it building and shot a panicked look in Marcus’ direction. She didn’t know if she’d be able to hold in a scream. Her body was too hot, her heart was beating too fast. She was starting to feel light headed, and she was losing control of the sounds escaping her.</i>
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    <i>She shoved her fist into her mouth and bent her head, trying anything she could to control her voice.</i>
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</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>Marcus seemed to notice that Ginny was close to coming because he finally looked up at her, slowly, desperately. He raised his finger to his lips, signaling that he wanted her to be quiet. Well, no shit Marcus. She was trying! She glared as he pulled his hand away from her, furious that he would dare to leave her when she was this close to coming.</i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>When he held her hand to stop her from using her own fingers and finishing herself off, she almost hit him. Seriously, Marcus?! What the fuck?! She tried to communicate to him with her eyes that she would be fucking DONE with him if he left her like this.</i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>He gave her a stupid, evil smirk then looked away.</i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>She couldn’t believe it! He was really going to work her to the edge and then… leave her?!</i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>Just as she was about to take her own hand out of his pants and get back to work, she felt his hand sliding under her jumper and into the waistband of her jeans.</i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>Oh.</i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>Holy.</i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>Shit.</i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>He wasn’t edging her at all.</i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>He was going to put his hands down her panties and finger her until she came! Ginny had never felt more love for any human being than she did in this moment.</i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>
      
    </i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>His fingers felt <i> so fucking good </i> against her pussy lips. He seemed to know exactly what to do to bring her right back to the edge. He rubbed her entire mound, under her jeans, his palm massaging her clit as he reached down to get his fingers into her cunt.</i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>
      
    </i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>FUCK. She was going to come so hard. So, so hard. She felt herself panting and grinding against his hand, but she couldn’t stop herself. She grit her teeth and tried not to squeal as he continued to work her expertly.</i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>
      
    </i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>She was so slippery and wet. Ginny knew there was definitely a wet patch running down her leg but she didn’t care. Come was gushing out of her at a record speed as Marcus finger fucked her harder and harder.</i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>
      
    </i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>GOD, she was going to explode. Fuck, it felt too good. It was happening. It was happening! She was going to come! In the middle of a chemistry lesson! </i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>
      
    </i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCCCCCCKKKKK.</i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>
      
    </i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>Ginny was pretty sure she had bitten a hole through her lip. Wave after wave of pleasure coursed through her body as Marcus continued to finger fuck her through her orgasm. </i></i></p><p>
  <i>
    <i></i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>
      
    </i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i></i>
  </i>
</p><p><i><i> His entire hand was down her pants and he was facing her completely with his body, one hand fucking her into oblivion while the other hand held her steadily by the neck.</i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>
      
    </i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>It was an absolute fucking miracle that no one had caught them yet, but Ginny was beyond caring.</i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>When she finally felt the last waves of pleasure leaving her body, Ginny let out a pleased little sigh and leaned in to give Marcus a quick peck on the lips.</i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>He smiled at her, his secret little smile, before bringing his fingers to his lips and licking them clean.</i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>
      
    </i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>
      
    </i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>Ginny didn’t breathe the entire time their eyes were connected, and she felt a fresh wave of warmth flood her lower abdomen. She swallowed hard, still watching as Marcus cleaned her juices off his fingers, moaning obscenely as though he had never tasted anything so good in his life.</i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>
      
    </i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>Ginny whimpered and squeezed her thighs together, not caring if she sounded like a needy little whore for him. It was his fault anyway, and she knew now that he was <i> definitely </i> doing it on purpose. </i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>
      
    </i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>Once Marcus was sure that he had licked every drop of come from his fingers, he simply and casually rebuttoned Ginny’s jeans, gave her a little kiss on the neck, and then went back to making notes in his notebook.</i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>Anyone looking back at him would have thought the last five minutes had never happened - that Ginny’s hand <i> hadn’t </i> just been down his pants, that he <i> hadn’t </i> just fingered her to orgasm and then LICKED THE COME off of his hand, before returning to work as usual.</i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>Ginny stared at him, dumbfounded. This guy had been a virgin just a couple months ago, and now he was getting girls off in the middle of class like it was nothing.</i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>His whole ‘unaffected’ aura would have passed an inspection from anyone else in the room who didn’t know him intimately. But Ginny could tell by the tense way he held his pencil in his hand as he made notes, as well as the flush creeping up his neck to his cheeks, that he wasn’t quite as unaffected as he was acting.</i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>She smiled at him - a free, happy smile - and leaned her head against his shoulder as she started reading her journal article in earnest. </i>
  </i>
</p><p>
  <i>
    <i>They worked in a companionable silence for the rest of the lesson, both of them happily touching and stroking the other as they read and wrote ideas for their project. Now that she had had an orgasm, Ginny wasn’t so annoyed by the soft touches and squeezes. In fact, she started to find them rather soothing.</i>
  </i>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0057"><h2>57. Chapter 57</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Ginny and Marcus separated happily after he walked her home from school. She was feeling lighter and happier than she had in a long time. All he needed to do was make sure she had a fresh orgasm every day before he resumed his soft stroking and touching! Was that really too much to ask for?! </p>
<p>Ginny hadn’t spoken to Marcus explicitly about forming this new schedule of morning orgasms, but she refused to go back to how things were before. Ginny was a woman and she had needs, damnit! She was pretty confident that she could convince Marcus that the system would benefit them both. Unfortunately, their little Chemistry lesson performance couldn’t be discussed on the walk home because Max had decided to join them and Ginny didn’t want to talk about Marcus’ fingers being inside her while his sister was in the conversation. It just… didn’t seem right for some reason.</p>
<p>They had a few moments alone when they got to her door, but Marcus still seemed to be set on his little touch strike so their kisses were the customary five-seconds before he put the brakes on. Seriously, did he really think Ginny couldn’t get them both off in five seconds? This felt like a challenge, and Ginny was ready to show him just how much she could get done in five seconds but… </p>
<p>“I should go,” Marcus sighed after their last kiss. He had been saying it for the last couple kisses, so Ginny was prepared to ignore him and just keep kissing him on her doorstep, but he held he back by her hair. Nnnnngggg. He KNEW how she reacted when he pulled her hair lightly like that.</p>
<p>She let out a little moan and then glared at him when her eyes opened. He was looking down at her teasingly and she just KNEW that he knew exactly what he was doing.</p>
<p>“Seriously, I have some things to get sorted now. You’re… free tomorrow, right?” he breathed, leaving soft kisses on her jawline in the most distracting way.</p>
<p>“Yesss,” she hissed, agreeing to whatever he said without thinking about it. “Oh no, wait. We agreed to hang out at Brody’s tomorrow, remember?” she reminded him, deciding that she was DEFINITELY going to trial her new, sexy jumper dress and thigh high boots look. She couldn’t <i> wait </i> to see his reaction when he saw her dressed like an actual girl for once. </p>
<p>GOD, she hadn’t even told him about her new underwear!?? He was going to DIE. Hopefully, they’d be able to find a little private time tomorrow so she could show him the miracles of lacy underwear.</p>
<p>Marcus winced and stepped back, shifting from one foot to the other. </p>
<p>Well, that wasn’t a good sign.</p>
<p>“You were right there, Marcus. If you didn’t want to hang out with my friends, you could have said it at the time. I’m going to Brody’s, but you don’t have to come if you really don’t want to.” She crossed her arms over her chest and tried not to sulk. She knew she was being totally hypocritical. </p>
<p>Marcus spent all his time hanging out with her friends now instead of his own friends, but… Ginny didn’t like his friends. They were weird and unwelcoming and she was, like, ten thousand percent sure that the girl in their group hated Ginny because she was secretly in love with Marcus. Ginny did NOT have time for that bullshit. </p>
<p>Marcus rolled his eyes with a little sigh, pulling Ginny into him so he could kiss her on the head. “No, it’s not because I don’t want to hang out with the Bro Squad at the weekend,” he explained, wrapping his arms around her waist and waiting for her to look up at him so he could continue. </p>
<p>Ginny looked at him expectantly, awaiting his explanation.</p>
<p>“I… had something planned, just the two of us. That’s all.” he responded tersely. He seemed kind of cagey and Ginny didn’t want to push.</p>
<p>“Okay? Well, we can hang out with just the two of us on Sunday? Or next weekend?” she suggested, trying to find a compromise.</p>
<p>Marcus looked down at her and bit his lip in frustration. He was staring intently at her mouth and Ginny had no idea why he didn’t just lean in and kiss her. They were literally standing together doing a full-body hug, so it’s not like kissing would be any more intimate. Honestly, she just did not understand the boy in front of her.</p>
<p>“No. I can’t-- it can’t wait. It has to be tomorrow,” he huffed with a sigh. “Spend the day with me!” he suggested. “We can go hang out with the gang in the evening, but I want you to myself during the day. Does that sound fair?” he asked, looking at her excitedly.</p>
<p>Ginny had no idea what he was planning, but she figured that the less she knew, the better it would be for her. Mentally. She’d find out tomorrow at any rate.</p>
<p>“Yeah, that sounds fair,” she responded with a smile as she leaned up to kiss him.</p>
<p>Exactly five seconds later, Marcus pulled back and placed another gentle kiss on her forehead. Ginny bit her lip to try to hide her smile at JUST HOW RIDICULOUS that boy could be. </p>
<p>“Great. I’ll see you tomorrow, then, Miller!” he said as he walked away from her. Ginny was still smiling as she opened the front door and walked through the house, trying to decide which of her new underwear sets she would put on tomorrow. She really shouldn’t have wasted the turquoise set on a school day. She had been too excited to wear her favourite new set and now she wouldn’t be able to wear it tomorrow when there was a chance that someone might ACTUALLY see her wearing it.</p>
<p>Typical.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>GUYS. Thank you so much for all your help and inspiration for the AMAZING DATE that I have now planned for M&amp;G.</p>
<p>I am in the process of writing it.</p>
<p>It may take a while.</p>
<p>But I will get there in the end.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0058"><h2>58. Chapter 58</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>WARNING</p>
<p>GUYS.</p>
<p>SO MANY THINGS TO WARN YOU ABOUT.</p>
<p>THIS IS NOT A HAPPY CHAPTER.</p>
<p>If you thought this chapter was going to be THE DATE, I have to warn you that it IS NOT. If you have the willpower, wait until I have posted up to Chapter 65 and then read them all in one go. </p>
<p>TRIGGER WARNING: MENTIONS OF PAST SELF-HARM.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>When Ginny walked into her room, she was still trying to mentally decide which bra-knicker-set she was going to be wearing tomorrow. She didn’t notice her brother sitting on the floor by the window immediately because he was sitting in silence, in the dark.</p>
<p>She approached him carefully, not wanting to scare him. “Austin? Are you okay? What’s wrong?” she asked as she got closer.</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>Ginny could see that he was rubbing the palm of his hand, examining the scarring from when he was attacked at school. Ginny’s expression softened as she took in the sight of her little brother. He looked so much smaller than usual. He had curled in on himself and he looked afraid.</p>
<p>“Has something else happened at school, Austin?!” She asked, panicked that his issues with bullying were still going on. She thought that Georgia had dealt with it?? Had Zach come back to school and just immediately started going after her brother again?! WHO WAS LOOKING OUT FOR THE CHILDREN IN THAT GOD DAMNED SCHOOL?</p>
<p>“No! No, Ginny, it’s nothing. I- nothing happened,” he seemed scared to tell her and Ginny’s heart broke. It had been all too easy for Ginny to forget about how much her baby brother was going through at school because of all the stupid drama in her own life. Even though she had PROMISED herself that she would devote more attention to Austin, she still ended up neglecting him when he needed her the most.</p>
<p>“I’m so sorry I haven’t been there for you recently Austin,” she pleaded with him to believe her. “You can tell me anything, okay? I’ll never judge you or think less of you, no matter what you tell me. I just want to be able to help you. You’re so important to me. I hate seeing you struggle.” </p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>“Is it Zach? Is he back at school now? Has he started bullying you again? You can tell me if he is! He shouldn’t even be within a hundred feet of you, so if he thinks he can start EVEN LOOKING in your direction after all the shit he’s put you through, Austin, I swear to God I’ll--”</p>
<p>“No, he’s not - he’s back in school but he’s not allowed to play on the same playground as me. He’s been moved into the other class.” he said sadly, sighing, and Ginny was confused. Wasn’t that a good thing? That little brat should have been sent to another SCHOOL in another COUNTRY.</p>
<p>“Everyone at school is being nice to me now. They all want to play with me at lunch time, and they save me seats, and they want to work in my group in class,” he cried, looking both scared and heartbroken at once. </p>
<p>“It’s only because they think I got stabbed in the hand so they’re not allowed to leave me out,” he whispered, afraid that if he admitted it too loudly, everyone would know that no one actually wanted to spend time with him.</p>
<p>Ginny couldn’t bear to see him thinking so little of himself.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>“That’s absolute bullshit, Austin, and you know it! The kids loved playing with you when I dropped you off at school! Not to mention Max and Marcus, who also loved spending time with you even before that little jerkoff decided to ruin his own life by messing with you. Don’t give that little piece of shit so much power over you. No one cares about him. They’re only excited to hang out with you NOW, because you’re finally letting them see the real you.”</p>
<p>Austin looked unconvinced, but tried to smile anyway.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>“What? You don’t believe me? You’re literally my best friend in the entire world. Most brothers and sisters aren’t as close as we are, because they don’t have an awesome sibling like you who just makes it so easy to want to chat and play games and have fun together. Are you saying you don’t trust MY judgement?” She gasped in mock outrage.</p>
<p>That finally got a real smile out of him.</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>“Nooo, I trust you! It’s just- Max and Marcus only hang out with me because they’re YOUR friends, so they have to be nice to me. I’m your little brother.” he explained. “And the kids at school are only being nice to me because the teacher told them to.”</p>
<p>“Errrr, Marcus DEFINITELY spends more time hanging out with you than he does with me. He’s never built ME a quidditch pitch in the backyard, has he? That was all for you. Don’t sell yourself short. And, so what if the kids at school are being nice to you because the teacher told them to? Are you having fun?” </p>
<p>Austin nodded shyly in response.</p>
<p>“Well then! It doesn’t matter at all! Just enjoy making these new friends and forget about everything else. I’m really sorry I haven’t been around so much in these last couple days,” she said as she leaned in to pull him into a hug. “You’re the most important thing in the world to me and I don’t want anyone hurting you ever again.” </p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>Ginny was mortified when Austin let out a gasping sob after she finished talking. What had she said??  </p>
<p>“Austin! What’s wrong? Why are you crying? DID something happen at school?!?” she asked, panicked.</p>
<p>“Everyone’s going to hate me!!!!” He sobbed as he struggled to pull in enough oxygen to breathe properly, “Y-You’ll never want t-t-t-o speak to me again and it’s a-a-all my FAULT!!” he was screaming and squirming and trying to get out of her hug. Ginny let him go but kept one hand firmly on his chest as she tried to remind him to breathe.</p>
<p>“Austin!” she whispered, “I would NEVER hate you. Do you understand? You’re my brother! My best friend! Nothing will change that - ever.”</p>
<p>Austin seemed to calm marginally when she said that and he stopped sobbing so uncontrollably. Ginny pulled him back into a hug and stroked his hair as he hiccoughed and tried to get his breathing under control.</p>
<p>She held his hand and brought him onto her bed, lying protectively behind him and whispering soothing sounds into his ear.</p>
<p>“Y-Y-you promise?” he asked eventually, after taking some deep, calming breaths.</p>
<p>“I promise,” she whispered and kissed him on the temple.</p>
<p>Austin sat up and faced Ginny, his expression determined and resolute.</p>
<p>“Zach didn’t stab me with a pencil.”</p>
<p>Ginny paused.</p>
<p>Not quite sure what he meant by that.</p>
<p>“Okay… what DID he stab you with?” she asked, still not sure where he was going with this.</p>
<p>“Nothing,” Austin sighed, and Ginny glanced quickly down at his hand. Yup. There was definitely a stab wound on his hand, sooo…?</p>
<p>“He didn’t stab me at all. I… I stabbed myself. I was just so angry and he walked up to my table and kept saying all those mean things about mom and her tatas and the mayor and I just… I was SO ANGRY and I had my pencil in my hand and I wanted to HURT him. I wanted to make him scream and cry, but I didn’t want to get in trouble, you know? It was like my brain just stopped communicating with my hands and before I knew it, I had stabbed MYSELF in the hand with my pencil and then I was screaming and I was crying and everyone just assumed that he did it and I never said otherwise!!!!” </p>
<p>There was a deafening silence.</p>
<p>Ginny couldn’t… she heard him. She understood each of the words that had come out of his mouth. But, she didn’t -- wait, what?</p>
<p>“So… Zach didn’t stab you?” she asked, just to clarify. Austin looked down and nodded.</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>“But he did push you around and say mean things before that, right?” </p>
<p>“YES! I didn’t lie about any of that! He broke my glasses and pushed me around all the time and he was always saying mean, confusing things that I didn’t understand when there was no one else around and I got sick of it!!”</p>
<p>“Okay, okay! I believe you. Did you… plan to hurt yourself and make it look like he did it?” She asked hesitantly, not wanting to upset him further, but just needing to gather the facts.</p>
<p>“Not really.” He mumbled to himself, “Not like, with the pencil or anything” he clarified. Well, at least that was good.</p>
<p>“You just felt really angry, but instead of lashing out and hurting the person who caused your anger, because that would have hurt him and made you get in trouble, you… instead, stabbed yourself?” She knew she was just repeating everything he said, but she had to be sure.</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>Austin was sulking and sitting defensively on the other side of the bed at this stage. Honestly? Ginny felt kind of relieved that Austin wasn’t being targeted by some psycho who had gone straight from insulting his family to weaponised assault within the space of a minute.</p>
<p>It actually made SO MUCH MORE sense that Austin was the one to lash out in anger, but did it in a smart way that meant he wouldn’t get in trouble. Her baby brother wasn’t some sad little victim, he was the bee! And that little shit Zach had chosen the wrooong motherfucking bee to mess with. Now was obviously not the time to articulate those thoughts, as it was very dangerous for Austin to lash out and harm himself even if it WAS with the sole purpose of getting rid of a bully.</p>
<p>Not gonna lie, Ginny was low-key impressed with her baby brother.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, Ginny didn’t get a chance to express her views, because Austin had been sitting, silently, stewing at his perception that Ginny sat there and dared to judge him for sticking up for himself. </p>
<p>He KNEW he couldn’t tell anyone the truth, and now his sister, the person he trusted most, was sitting there and thinking that he was crazy. Everyone was going to think he was crazy for hurting himself just because someone else was being mean to him.</p>
<p>As he looked around in fury, his eye caught sight of the innocent-looking lighter on Ginny’s bed stand. Internally, he gasped, knowing exactly what Ginny had used the lighter for in the past. He shared a room with her, for Christ’s sake. Why did people think he was blind and dumb, just because he was a kid? How dare she judge him for stabbing himself for the specific purpose of getting rid of a bully, when she was out there using her lighter in shame at home for no reason?!</p>
<p>“Well. At least I had a good reason for hurting myself,” he said, looking pointedly between the lighter on Ginny’s night stand and his sister who was sitting next to him in shock. He watched as her gaze followed the direction of his stare and her eyes widened as she took in the implication of his words.</p>
<p>“I hurt myself so I could get rid of the person who was being mean to me. So that I wouldn’t get in trouble for hurting him instead of me! He was doing something wrong and I did something about it! Unlike SOME people who might just hurt themselves alone, in shame, because there is no reason for it!” he was practically yelling by the end and Ginny flinched as though she had just been slapped.</p>
<p>She wished she really could have been slapped, instead of… whatever it was that she was experiencing.</p>
<p>What was Austin talking about?? </p>
<p>She looked at the lighter again, then looked at the expression of vengeful fury on her brother’s face and tried to figure out what he was talking about. What did he mean??</p>
<p>He couldn’t really mean.</p>
<p>He was still glaring at her, but his gaze flickered towards the lighter again. </p>
<p>No.</p>
<p>No!?</p>
<p>“Austin, I don’t know wha--”</p>
<p>“We shared a room for YEARS, Ginny! I KNOW what you were doing! Don’t lie to me! I’m not some stupid little kid!!”</p>
<p>“No, but, Austin, I swear--”</p>
<p>“I never judged you for it. Not ONCE. I knew it was because you were sad and I didn’t want to make you feel worse so I never said anything to anyone!”</p>
<p>“Austin. Stop. Now.”</p>
<p>“But you sit there and you’re judging me because I made one mistake!! It’s not fair! It was ONE moment, but you did that basically EVERY NIGHT when we were living with Kenny and I never told mom or Kenny or anyone even though it was really scary and I didn’t understand it! But I trusted you! And now I want you to trust me, and you’re making me feel worse!”</p>
<p>“SHUT. THE FUCK. UP. AUSTIN. YOU HAD NO RIGHT. NO RIGHT!!!” Ginny roared, unleashing months of repressed fury and desperation upon her younger brother.</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>Ginny was BEYOND furious. She had never felt this level of rage and betrayal and embarrassment and hurt and FEAR in all her life. NO ONE. Knew about that! No one. And she WASN’T GOING TO TALK ABOUT IT.</p>
<p>Not with this spoiled little fucking CHILD. Who had NO IDEA what he was talking about.</p>
<p>She hadn’t done that for MONTHS. And she had had a VERY good reason for it, thank you VERY much. The lighter was there to remind her of how far she’d come. How much better she was at taking control of her life in healthy ways. She was fucking PROUD that she hadn’t been using it, and it was a VERY PERSONAL, very private thing that she was absolutely never going to discuss with anyone!!</p>
<p>The silence in the room was explosive, deadly. They could feel it in the air. Something had changed between them, forever. There was no going back now. Too much had been said and Ginny couldn’t bear to look her brother in the eye.</p>
<p>Her voice was a low, dangerous growl when she spoke. “Get. The fuck. Out of my room, right now, Austin.” She was speaking through gritted teeth, trying her best to reign in the urge to pick up something heavy and THROW IT at the person standing in her room, violating her private space.</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>“I’m not going to tell anyone what a manipulative little sociopath you are, Austin, because quite frankly, I’m feeling sick to my stomach at the thought that I’m related to someone so unfeeling and vile. So you can get out of here, right now, without worrying that your disgusting little secret will ever be shared with anyone.” Her voice was threatening, even though the volume was barely above a whisper. The tension in the room was palpable, and Ginny really was feeling nauseous. </p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>“But if you ever, EVER, try to talk to me about that shit again?” she glanced at the lighter pointedly before returning her glare in Austin’s direction, “I will end you.” </p>
<p>
  
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0059"><h2>59. Chapter 59</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Okay, the sad bit is mostly over now.</p>
<p>I HAD TO DO IT.</p>
<p>I've been putting off that scene for AGES!!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Bzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz</p>
<p>Bzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz</p>
<p>Bzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz</p>
<p>URHG. FUCK OFF. What was that AWFUL buzzing and why was it so bright and sunny? Ginny felt like she had been run over by a truck filled with dildos. She had no idea why she felt like she had been hit with that particular kind of truck, but that was just the vibe she was feeling.</p>
<p>She rolled over and pulled the quilt over her head, ignoring the stupid buzzing of her phone. It was probably just Marcus. Or Max. Or her dad. Either way, she did not need to wake up and face the day, yet.</p>
<p>Ginny had never fought with Austin before. In their ENTIRE lives. They had been best friends since the moment he had been born. He had been her rock, her confidant, and he had known everything about her life since the moment he had been old enough to comprehend the spoken word.</p>
<p>She knew that it was weird, and that siblings always fought, because they spent all their time together and it was inevitable. But they had LEGIT never fought about anything. If Austin ever wanted one of Ginny’s toys, she was ready to give it to him before he even fully realised that he wanted it. If Ginny was moody or sad, Austin was ALWAYS the person to get her out of the funk.</p>
<p>He had never been the CAUSE of her terrible mood.</p>
<p>She didn’t know how to deal.</p>
<p>And she couldn’t even tell anyone about their fight - it was based on deadly secrets and ensured mutual destruction. If she told anyone that she was mad at him, they’d immediately want to know why. And what was she going to say?</p>
<p>She couldn’t even THINK it without feeling like she had been punched in the gut.</p>
<p>She felt like she had secretly been walking a tight rope for her entire life, without even realising it until now. Austin was her invisible safety net. But, he had been keeping her from even realising the peril that she had been living in.</p>
<p>Now she felt naked, exposed. How DARE he take her deepest shame and use it against her? How could those thoughts even enter his mind? What kind of warped thinking would lead someone to say things like that? Did she even know him at all?</p>
<p>Who was that person? What was he becoming? </p>
<p>She knew he was going through a lot. And based on what he had said, he probably took her shocked silence for judgement of his behaviour. This was probably the biggest secret that Austin had ever had in his life. As his big sister, she had never, for one moment, thought about judging him harshly or blaming him for what he felt he had been forced to do.</p>
<p>Ginny had understood his reasoning immediately. She should have reassured him immediately that she understood him and wasn’t judging his actions. She knew that now. Really, she did. It wasn’t like he was this little monster saying and doing horrible things without any reason.</p>
<p>He was a kid, and he was scared, and he was lashing out because he had done the wrong thing and he didn’t know what to do about it. </p>
<p>Oh shit, and she had said that his behaviour was vile and shameful, hadn’t she?? </p>
<p>OH SHIT. He probably really thought she was disgusted by what he had done, not … the things… he had spoken about. Ginny needed to make sure he understood that she really didn’t think any less of him because he had made the decision to hurt himself instead of hurting Zach. But she couldn’t get out of bed. She couldn’t face him, knowing that he <i> knew. </i> </p>
<p><i> He had known this entire time. He had known and he hadn’t told anyone. </i> </p>
<p>He must have been so confused, and scared! Ginny couldn’t talk about it though!? What if he told someone now? </p>
<p>FUCK.</p>
<p>She needed to talk to him. She was still disgusted by the way he spoke to her, the fact that he thought she would judge him so harshly, the fact that he was willing to hold something so sacred and personal against her. But she needed to make sure he kept his fucking mouth shut.</p>
<p>Later.</p>
<p>She heard a knock on her window and groaned. UGH. Not NOW, Marcus! </p>
<p>She stayed hidden under her quilt, pretending to be asleep. It didn’t stop him from coming in, but at least he tried to stay quiet as he moved through her room. What time was it? He had asked her to spend the day with him, but he hadn’t specified that he meant FROM THE CRACK OF DAWN.</p>
<p>And she couldn’t even get her phone to check the time, because she was pretending to be asleep. UGH.</p>
<p>She felt the mattress dip beside her as Marcus made himself comfortable on her bed, while she was ‘sleeping’. Creep. She could bet MONEY that he was reading one of her books.</p>
<p>“I know you’re not sleeping,” he said casually, as he lazily flicked through whichever book he had chosen to read. “You never sleep with your head under the covers,” he continued in a teasing tone.</p>
<p>Ginny pulled her duvet down and turned to glare at him. “It’s disturbing that you know that, by the way. Truly horrifying.” She stretched and yawned, finally giving up on the idea of being able to go back to sleep. She had just been lying there worrying, anyway. </p>
<p>“What time is it?” she asked as she moved into a comfy position, allowing her to rest her head on his chest. She snuggled in close to him with a smile. Mmmm, it was nice to be able to wake up like this. She could really get used to it.</p>
<p>And wasn’t THAT a horrifying thought?</p>
<p>“Probably just after 7,” Marcus responded.</p>
<p>“In the morning?” </p>
<p>“Mm hm,” he was so engrossed in whichever book Ginny had left on her desk that he barely gave any thought to the words coming out of his mouth. </p>
<p>Ginny let out a long-suffering groan and then reached for her phone to check that the time really was seven o’clock in the morning.</p>
<p>“MARCUS!” she yelled when she saw that it was, indeed, 7AM. “It’s SATURDAY! Why are we awake so early?!”</p>
<p>At this, he finally put her book down and looked down at her with a raised eyebrow. “We have a busy day ahead of us.”</p>
<p>“MARCUUUUS. IT’S THE WEEKEND. Our busy day should start later!” she complained, burying her face in his chest. “I like sleeping,” she grumbled.</p>
<p>“Well, okay, yes. Technically I don’t have anything planned for us until lunch time but… I couldn’t sleep. And I wanted to see you so we could start our day together.”</p>
<p>“Awwww. You are so disgustingly sappy and I hate it!” She teased, looking up at him.</p>
<p>“No, you don’t, otherwise you wouldn’t be spending the day with me,” he leaned down and placed a gentle kiss on her lips. </p>
<p>Ginny smiled before she suddenly affected a shocked expression on her face. “Ohhhh no! I just realised that today is no good for me!” </p>
<p>“Oh no, do you have work? Could we call Joe and ask if you could switch shifts?” Marcus asked with a panicked expression on his face.</p>
<p>He was so easy, Ginny almost didn’t even enjoy toying with him like this.</p>
<p>Almost.</p>
<p>“I can’t because I am busy going out with you,” she grinned, paraphrasing one of her favourite scenes from The Office. She knew it wouldn’t make any sense to Marcus yet because it was in Season 5, and he was probably on like Season 2 still, but he would get there eventually and then he would remember her hilarious reference to it once he watched it. And then he’d call her and they’d laugh about it. </p>
<p>He looked at her with narrowed eyes and Ginny’s grin grew at the chagrined expression on his face. He was definitely not pleased that she had pretended to disrupt their day’s plans, but she was cackling to herself.</p>
<p>After a moment, Marcus, without skipping a beat, put his head in his hand and replied, “Oh, no. I just remembered. I can’t today.”</p>
<p>Ginny looked at him suspiciously.</p>
<p>“Because I’m going out with you.” He continued and Ginny laughed out loud.</p>
<p>WHAT were the chances that he responded so perfectly without having even seen it?? Oh God, he was going to FREAK OUT when he got to that episode and saw that they had mirrored that entire conversation between Michael and Holly. </p>
<p>Ginny wanted to keep it going but she had ruined it with her hysterical laughter. She couldn’t believe that he had responded so perfectly! </p>
<p>He was smiling at her uproarious laughter and shaking his head at her antics. Ginny wiped the tears of laughter from her eyes as her laughter slowly died down.</p>
<p>Ah, she had needed that laugh. Maybe this day wouldn’t be as bad as she had expected it to be when she woke up. </p>
<p>She leaned her head on Marcus’ chest and let out a sigh. Her fingers absentmindedly traced soothing circles all along his chest and stomach and she eventually fell asleep on him again with a smile on her face.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0060"><h2>60. Chapter 60</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The next time Ginny woke up, she was feeling much more happy and refreshed than she had been at 7AM. Apparently, at some point in their nap, they had turned over so Marcus was spooning her from behind with his arms wrapped around her. His entire body was pressed against her in the most cuddly and comfortable way, and his face was pressed into her neck.</p>
<p>Now that Ginny was awake, she could feel his breath tickling the hairs on her neck every time he breathed out and it made her squirm. She could feel his lips gently rubbing against the back of her neck and she had to breathe in deeply to try to retain control over herself.</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>“Marcus?” she whispered, trying to see if he was awake and touching her like this on purpose. He let out a loud breath, almost a snore, right next to her ear and she tried to hold in a giggle. Marcus Baker cuddled and snored! This was almost too precious. </p>
<p>The arm wrapped around her middle was lightly rubbing on her stomach, and the little touches were making Ginny feel antsy. She knew that Marcus needed sleep - he had come to see her because he had been struggling to get sleep in the night. All she needed to do was to control her inappropriate urges so that he could get some well-needed rest.</p>
<p>It should NOT have been so difficult for her to just lie still while he slept next to her.</p>
<p>However, now that she was awake, and she could feel every inch of the boy behind her, she was finding it almost impossible to control her urge to rub up against him like some deranged cat in heat. She was aware of every breath, every movement, every small noise he made as he slept. And she wanted to feel him grab her harder, growl into her ear instead of leaving soft breathy little sighs, squeeze her hips as he ground into her from behind.</p>
<p>GOD, she was such a thirsty little pervert! The poor guy was just trying to get some sleep and she was out here imagining all the sinful things she wanted to do to him! It was even worse knowing that he would absolutely not consent to it were he awake. She had managed to temporarily trick him into ending their little touch-embargo yesterday, but she was sure that he wouldn’t be pleased if he woke up now with his fingers ‘accidentally’ rubbing her to orgasm.</p>
<p>Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhh, fuck. She knew that her vibrator was in the bedside table right in front of her. </p>
<p>Did she dare? </p>
<p>It would definitely wake him up, and that wasn’t exactly what she was hoping for.</p>
<p>But her fingers just COULDN’T do the job! She had no idea why. When he touched her with HIS fingers, it was always the perfect pressure, the perfect amount of friction, and it always brought her closer to the edge. But whenever <i> she </i> tried to rub herself with her own fingers, it was always either too hard when she impatiently tried to rush herself to orgasm, or it was too soft and she could never find the right teasing balance. </p>
<p>Desperate enough to try again, but still unwilling to wake Marcus when he so obviously needed all the sleep he could get, Ginny slowly trailed her fingers down to her center. She let out a shaky, quiet breath when she felt how wet and sensitive she was.</p>
<p>Perhaps the problem wasn’t actually with her fingers, but with the fact that when she was touching herself, she didn’t have Marcus pressed against her. Because Ginny was fairly certain that she was going to come almost as soon as her fingers started circling her clit, and that had NEVER happened to her in the past. </p>
<p>So wrapped up was she in her first self-induced-by-finger orgasm (small though it may have been), Ginny didn’t even realise when Marcus’ hands started to roam her body more firmly and purposely. He was gripping her hip tightly with one hand while the other reached up to play with her nipples lightly, and it was all just adding to the feeling of her orgasm.</p>
<p>It was only when her small orgasm subsided that Ginny noticed how Marcus was now placing biting kisses and and sucking on her neck while grinding his hard cock into her back. The sensations, coupled with the pleasurable feeling of her fingers on her clit, were sending Ginny right back into another orgasm. She could feel it building almost immediately, and she had a feeling that this one was going to be much bigger than her previous one.</p>
<p>“Nnnnngnggg, Marcus!” She gasped out when he sucked particularly hard on her neck. She ground back into him as the hand on her hip moved down to replace the hand on her clit, rubbing her absolutely perfectly as her orgasm built and built within her body. </p>
<p>Ginny lay on her back, unable to focus on anything but the feeling of Marcus’ fingers on her, and her desperate need to come. </p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>“Marcus! Please!” She whispered, having absolutely no idea what she was begging for, but just knowing that she needed more. “Please!”</p>
<p>“Fuck, Ginny,” he whispered in her ear as he continued rubbing her clit harder and harder. </p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>Marcus pulled her closer to him, placing one of her legs over his, spreading her wider so he could gain access to his new favourite spot. He gently inserted one finger, groaning at how easily it slipped into her soaking wet entrance. He was panting and grinding against her as his fingers ploughed into her and Ginny was on the verge of screaming.</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>For the second time in 24 hours, Ginny found herself biting down on her fist and trying her hardest to control her breathing and her vocal chords. She knew that her mom was aware of her relationship with Marcus, but she had the feeling that no one would appreciate hearing her screaming orgasms ringing through the house.</p>
<p>Luckily, they were in a much more private space this time, so Marcus was able to remove the fist from her mouth, replacing it instead with his lips. He kissed her hard, passionately, as he fingered her through her orgasm. </p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>Ginny let out a little laugh when she finally came down from her orgasm, feeling like she was literally on top of the world. WOW. Orgasms were <i> so much fun. </i></p>
<p>Before she had a chance to even consider returning the favour, Marcus sat up urgently.</p>
<p>“I should go,” he said as he sat up, looking around shiftily and refusing to meet her eye.</p>
<p>Ugh. FUCK. Ginny had forgotten about his touch strike. God, what was the fucking point? Orgasms were FUN, and she LIKED GETTING THEM. </p>
<p>“Marcus…” she started, ready to apologise for besmirching his innocence or whatever. </p>
<p>“No, really. I’ve got so much to do, and we don’t have much time. What time is it?” he asked as he got up from her bed and started gathering his things.</p>
<p>“Marcus? Please stop. I’m sorry, okay? I didn’t mean for things to escalate like that, and I know you don’t want us to be physical for whatever reason, and I’m sorry I made us--”</p>
<p>Marcus sat back down and smiled at her exasperatedly. “Ginny, you don’t have anything to apologise for. I really am rushing around because I need to sort out a couple more things and I honestly didn’t mean to fall asleep. Okay? Now, I need you to get ready and meet me outside in an hour. Can you do that for me?” Ginny nodded at him, still confused and a bit dumbfounded at the sudden turn of events. </p>
<p>“Dress warm!” He grabbed her and gave her a quick peck on the forehead before rushing back to the window.</p>
<p>He turned around once he got it open and was ready to climb through. He stopped and looked at her with his dopey little smile, immediately calming all of Ginny’s worries. She grinned back at him like an idiot, and they sat there, just staring at each other for a while before he snapped himself out of it and remembered that he was in a rush. </p>
<p>“I love you, Ginny Miller,” he declared easily, before looking down at his watch. “Now, you have 58 minutes to meet me outside. Hurry!” And with that, he was gone.</p>
<p>Ginny collapsed back onto her bed and let out a giggle. She couldn’t wait to spend her day with that ridiculous, silly, beautiful weirdo.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0061"><h2>61. Chapter 61</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Ginny was ashamed to admit how long she spent trying to decide which outfit she wanted to wear after Marcus left her. For some reason, even though she had SPECIFICALLY GONE OUT just to buy these stupid girly new clothes, it felt like nothing was right for the occasion. Marcus seemed to be so stressed about their date and she was worried he was going to take her to some fancy restaurant or something??</p>
<p>But then he told her to dress warm!!?</p>
<p>WHAT WAS HE DOING AND WHY DIDN’T HE GIVE HER AN ITINERARY SO SHE COULD DRESS APPROPRIATELY?</p>
<p>Ginny was seriously regretting letting him go without grilling him for details.</p>
<p>She had spent FAR TOO LONG giggling to herself and mooning over her stupid …person… after he left. And then she spent too long in the shower, and now she only had 28 minutes to get dressed and put on makeup and make herself look like a Goddess instead of the tired swamp monster she always dressed as.</p>
<p>It was RIDICULOUS.</p>
<p>Who tells someone to get ready IN ONE HOUR without telling them exactly what to wear??</p>
<p>The only positive was that Ginny already knew which underwear she was going to wear, and was happily strutting around in her matching deep purple silky, lacy set. It was comfy and sensual, and honestly, Ginny wanted to go out wearing nothing BUT her beautiful underwear.</p>
<p>Any clothes she put on her body would just ruin the devastatingly beautiful look she was rocking right now in her lacy bra and panties.</p>
<p>But, stupid MARCUS, had told her to dress WARM and now she had no idea what to wear!!</p>
<p>Obviously, she was going to wear a jumper dress. That was a given. But now she was regretting getting so many different options!! If she wore the white one, she was absolutely guaranteed to spill some sort of spaghetti sauce all down the front. It was a guarantee. Even if she didn’t eat ANYTHING even remotely resembling spaghetti, she’d find a way to get spaghetti sauce on it. Honestly, she had no idea why she had let Georgia talk her into it. Ginny could NOT wear white without ruining it.</p>
<p>The tan one was a bit too short, stopping literally just under her ass. But, it was the one made of the thickest material, so it would keep her warmest, even if the tops of her thighs would freeze. Unless she wore shorts under it? But she didn’t want to wear shorts, because she wanted to be able to show Marcus her pretty pretty panties but make it look like an accident and she couldn’t DO THAT if she was wearing shorts under her stupid jumper dress!!</p>
<p>The red one was too red and she wasn’t feeling it. The black one was the thinnest, and she’d probably have to wear a shirt under it to keep her warm and there was NO WAY IN HELL she was going to put EVEN MORE LAYERS between her beautiful underwear and the world around her. Not today.</p>
<p>So, that left the forest green one. It was a nice colour. And it would look good with her purple underwear. And it was warm. It wasn’t too short like the tan dress, and it wasn’t too thin like the black one. But she kiiiiiinda wanted to wear the tan one so she could be more slutty all day without being OBVIOUS about it. The green one wouldn’t ride up as easily.</p>
<p>Fuck it. She was going with the slutty look. Ginny grabbed the tan dress, her fluffy, warm, thigh high socks, and her new black thigh high boots. She already felt like a goddess despite her hair and face being a mess. She spent the next 18 minutes fussing with her hair and makeup before finally, FINALLY, rushing through the house to meet Marcus outside. With 3 minutes to spare. Fuck yeah!</p>
<p>She turned around after closing her front door, fully prepared to walk to Marcus’ house to surprise him with her earliness, but was stopped dead in her tracks when she saw him walking up her driveway.</p>
<p>Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuucccccccccccccckkkkkkkk.</p>
<p>He cleaned up good.</p>
<p>He wasn’t even wearing anything particularly out of the ordinary. Just black jeans with a black jumper. It was just… the way it fit him. Was so different to the baggy jeans and t-shirts he was always wearing. Ginny loved the way the jumper almost clung to his lean frame, and she had to swallow hard as she took in his entire appearance.</p>
<p>Thank God she had had an orgasm just less than an hour ago. She was already feeling randy and she couldn’t imagine how much worse she would have been without it.</p>
<p>When Ginny looked up to meet Marcus’ eyes, she was pleased to see the same shocked and hungry look on his face. </p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>His eyes were blazing as he slowly looked up and down her body in a way that just SCREAMED “I’m going to fuck you. So hard.”</p>
<p>To be honest, Ginny was ready to just take him back to her room and spend the rest of the day in bed. Why did they even need to go out? They knew what they were about. They had all the time in the world to go out! Right now, she wanted to jump the beautiful boy standing in front of her. </p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>But then he smiled nervously at her, looking more adorable than ever, and Ginny melted into a puddle. She walked up to him and gave him a peck on the lips, smiling the entire time.</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>“Hi,” she whispered against his lips when she pulled back.</p>
<p>His arms held her tightly around the waist as he whispered back, “Hi,” with a grin on his face.</p>
<p>“Sooo…” she started, still looking up at him and wondering if they would spend the entire day just standing together staring into each other’s eyes. I mean, she wouldn’t necessarily <i> mind </i> if that’s all they were going to do, but she could think of warmer, comfier places to do it…</p>
<p>Marcus cleared his throat, “Right. Yes. The date.” he reminded himself.</p>
<p>“DATE?!” Ginny asked in mock surprise. “I thought we were just FRIENDS?!” she exclaimed, horrified. “Awww, Marcus, did you think I wanted to DATE you? Gosh, how embarrassing. I feel so bad for you,” she continued to tease him as he mock-glared at her.</p>
<p>“Haaa haaa haaa. You are hilarious,” he deadpanned. “Do you want to find out what we’re doing? Or do you want to stand there and keep being mean?” He asked with a fake pout.</p>
<p>Oh wow.</p>
<p>Ginny knew he was just playing, but she was pretty sure he could get her to do ANYTHING AT ALL if he had that expression on his face. He was literally just the most adorable thing she had ever seen and she really really really wanted to drag him back to her bed.</p>
<p>Bad, Ginny. Stop that.</p>
<p>She swallowed hard, looking up at him, and he smirked down at her - probably realising exactly where her thoughts had taken her. Damn. She needed to work on her poker face. </p>
<p>“Alright, fine. Where are you taking me?” She asked, not intending the double entendre initially, but knowing full well that the suggestive, breathy tone of voice definitely made it come out less innocently than she had imagined.</p>
<p>She swallowed hard. Again. Deep breaths, Ginny. In and Out. You can do this.</p>
<p>“Right, well, actually - here’s the thing. This whole date kind of hinges on you being able to take us? Because the places we need to go are kind of far and I don’t feel like I’m quite ready to get us both there alive on the bike?” </p>
<p>“Um, Marcus? That sounds like a detail you should have planned before we were ready to head out??” Ginny exclaimed, incredulously.</p>
<p>“Well, I was thinking about all the other things and I just kind of forgot about travelling!” he whined. “Please tell me you’re able to ride long distances?” he begged.</p>
<p>Ginny rolled her eyes and put him out of his misery. “You’re lucky that I literally grew up around motorcycles for my entire life.” Holding out her hand for the keys, “Next time you plan on taking a girl out for the first time, though, I’d suggest you make sure you can get there safely!” she finished with a teasing smile.</p>
<p>As she walked up to where his motorbike was parked across the road, she completely missed hearing as he muttered under his breath, “Hopefully, this is the last time I have to take a girl out for the first time,” before chasing after the girl of his dreams who just also happened to be a whiz on a motorcycle. </p>
<p>He was man enough to admit that he could ride as a passenger while his girl drove them around. And he definitely wouldn’t feel bad about getting to wrap his arms around her waist while she manoeuvred them through traffic. In fact, now that he thought about it, it was a damned great idea.</p>
<p>“Okay, first you have to navigate us to this location,” he instructed as he handed her his phone with Waze already loaded up on it. “But you’re NOT ALLOWED to look at the final destination. That’s still a surprise until we get there.”</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Thank you @Two_For_Mirth for giving me the idea of Marcus asking Ginny to do all the driving because he has no idea what to do!! (And he secretly just loves it when she takes control.) I love it.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0062"><h2>62. Chapter 62</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>So, I just want to thank my girl 1dganggang for inspiring this ENTIRE SECTION of their date. It does mean, however, that if you’ve never watched The Office, there may be some references that you just don’t understand. So… I think, maybe, if you have time (20 minutes), you should watch The Office (US) Season 2, Episode 1: The Dundies. </p>
<p>You don’t need to watch any of Season 1, it’s not really a plot-driven show so you don’t need to catch up on anything, but… If you want to understand some of the jokes or references, I’d head to Netflix and watch it. The chapter will be fine if you haven’t watched it (I think), but it will be much better if you do.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>After pulling into what seemed to be an old, not very frequently used industrial estate, Ginny was starting to worry that Marcus was actually a secret serial killer and she was about to be his first victim.</p>
<p>She stopped the bike and parked it in a free spot, turning around to face him without taking off her helmet.</p>
<p>“Are you sure we’re in the right spot?” she asked, feeling a bit concerned.</p>
<p>Marcus rolled his eyes and responded, “Yes! I just chose a spot that was a little bit further out so you wouldn’t be able to figure out where we’re going. It’s a five minute walk, you’ll be fine!” </p>
<p>He jumped off the bike, locked it, and took off his helmet, securing it to the side. He held out his hand so that Ginny could lace their fingers together as they walked towards his mysterious location. The scenery was kinda sad and creepy, she wasn’t going to lie. There were a bunch of old, grey buildings everywhere and the entire area looked like it had seen better days.</p>
<p>“This place doesn’t seem… safe,” she said warily as they walked together.</p>
<p>Marcus leaned down to whisper in her ear, “You’re always safe when you’re with me. I’m a very good screamer.” Ginny snorted with laughter and they continued on.</p>
<p>When they rounded a corner into what looked like another, more popular retail estate, Ginny turned to smack him in the arm.</p>
<p>“WHY couldn’t we have parked HERE?!” she gestured to the massive parking lot surrounded by shops and restaurants galore. “There are SO MANY SHOPS AND RESTAURANTS HERE, I wouldn’t have been able to guess where we were going!!”</p>
<p>“I didn’t want to risk it!” he responded cryptically as he led them to the opposite end of the car park.</p>
<p>As they got nearer to the restaurant, Marcus could see the moment that Ginny recognised where they were going.</p>
<p>“Marcus?” She asked hesitantly, eyes straight ahead.</p>
<p>“Yes, Ginny?” He responded, unable to keep the grin from his face.</p>
<p>“Is that… Is that a CHILI’S RESTAURANT??” She asked, bouncing up and down in excitement. </p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“LIKE IN THE OFFICE????” She was practically screaming at this point and Marcus laughed out loud, so relieved that she was reacting positively to his restaurant choice. </p>
<p>He could finally breathe easy knowing that he had made the right decision on where to have their first date.</p>
<p>“THESE RESTAURANTS ACTUALLY EXIST?? ARE YOU SERIOUS!?!? I THOUGHT THEY MADE IT UP FOR THE SHOW!!!!!!!!!!!” she SCREECHED as she grabbed hold of his hand, running towards the restaurant.</p>
<p>“OH MY GOD, I WANT AN AWESOME BLOSSOM AND BABY BACK RIBS AND ALL THE COCKTAILS THAT PAM HAD!!!” she screamed as they got to the door.</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>Marcus laughed and wrapped his arm around the bouncing, excitable little person in front of him as he told the waitress about their reservation. He kissed her head as she gushed about how Chili’s was the new golf course and that she had written a letter to Small Businessman Magazine.</p>
<p>That girl watched The Office WAY too much.</p>
<p>When they sat at their booth, she was so excited, she couldn’t even sit still.</p>
<p>“OKAY. OKAY. LAST ONE, I PROMISE!” she exclaimed when she saw that he was looking at her like she was an adorable but embarrassing little alien monster, “Um, so, finally. I wanna thank God… because… God gave me this Dundie. And I feel God in this Chili’s tonight. WHOOOOOOOOO!!!”</p>
<p>“Okay, now I’m done, I swear, we can get back to dating like normal human beings,” she finished with a blush, noticing that the people around them we looking at her strangely.</p>
<p>She could not POSSIBLY be the only person in the restaurant who watched The Office?? IT WAS A HIT TV SHOW.</p>
<p>“Erm, you cannot POSSIBLY be done after just that. I’m sure you have the ENTIRE Dundies episode memorised! I chose this place so you could live your wildest Office-based fantasies!” Marcus teased her in return, trying to distract her from being embarrassed. </p>
<p>“Now, are you going to do the Ping impression, or shall I?” he asked.</p>
<p>“NO! OH MY GOD NO! NO PING!!!!!!!!” Ginny jumped up from her seat and forcefully placed her hands over his mouth. “NO Ping. Promise??” she asked, waiting for him to nod before she would remove her hand. “That was the worst part of my life. OH GOD and that girl’s face as she watched!! Ugh, I’m so horrified. I think I blocked that scene out of my memory…”</p>
<p>As Ginny despaired over her memory of the Ping impression, Marcus used her distraction to pull her into the seat at his side and wrap his arm around her. He didn’t like having her sitting all the way across the table, anyway. They could sit side by side while they ate. There was nothing wrong with that.</p>
<p>“Mmmmm, fine then. I guess I’ll just have to announce to the entire restaurant that it’s time to give out the award for the person who really… lights up the office,” he whispered in her ear as he let his hand roam up and down her bare thigh.</p>
<p>Ginny didn’t even notice his hand on her thigh as she laughed uproariously at the image of Michael singing ‘You sexy thing’ to Ryan. Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhh man that was so fucking funny.</p>
<p>“Somebody, we just can’t keep… from checking out!” she responded in her best Michael-impression, after she stopped laughing.</p>
<p>“I believe in MIRACLES!” Marcus started singing. LOUDLY. IN FRONT OF ALL THE PEOPLE. Ginny could feel him starting to get up to make a scene and she PANICKED, grabbing him in for a kiss.</p>
<p>“DON’T YOU DARE!” she ordered once their lips were parted, and he laughed, sitting back down, but still moving around like he was dancing on the spot.</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>“HEYA HO, YOU SEXY THAAANG” he continued to sing and Ginny hid her face in her hands. Oh my god, she could never take this absolute madman ANYWHERE.</p>
<p>“Marcus, I am begging you, STOP, NOW!” she begged, and she would probably have been way more convincing if she hadn’t been laughing HYSTERICALLY the entire time. </p>
<p>Every time she tried to put  her hands over his mouth, he moved back teasingly like when Ryan was trying to take the Dundie from Michael, and she just died. “Heyin an a hheyan ana ho,” he continued as she tried to grab him to shut him up.</p>
<p>“Do you know what the worst part about all this is?” She asked him, hoping that starting a conversation would distract him from being THE MOST EMBARRASSING MONSTER in the world.</p>
<p>“NO ONE WILL EVEN BELIEVE ME IF I TELL THEM ABOUT THIS!! You are such a HUGE NERD but everyone thinks you’re all cool and quiet and it’s like they’ve NEVER MET YOU before because you’re actually a sadistic MONSTER!” she yelled over him as he continued to impersonate Michael at the Dundies. </p>
<p>He finally stopped when she yelled at him for being a monster, but they were still both grinning like dumbasses. He leaned in to place a forceful kiss on her lips and Ginny grabbed his face, pulling him into her. The kiss was demanding, almost punishing, but it wasn’t giving Ginny that uncontrollable horny feeling that she always had around Marcus.</p>
<p>She just felt like laughing and laughing and laughing.</p>
<p>She couldn’t believe that he was SUCH A WEIRDO underneath his mysterious, distant persona. He was dramatic AF, and Ginny could definitely see how he and Max were related.</p>
<p>If anything, Ginny was almost starting to believe that Max was the sane twin, with a sensible head on her shoulders while Marcus was the wild, drama queen. </p>
<p>They were both still smiling when they pulled away from the kiss, and Ginny was ready to lean in for an actually romantic kiss so they could start the romantic part of their date.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, Marcus wasn’t really reading the mood. </p>
<p>To the tune of Tiny Dancer, he started singing, “YOU HAVE WON A TINY DUUUUNNDIE,” as soon as they parted. </p>
<p>He knew that Ginny would retaliate violently, so he leaned back, out of reach of her fists. What he hadn’t counted on, however, was that their waitress would have walked up to their table at that exact moment, ready to take their order.</p>
<p>His head ended up hitting her in the middle of the stomach and he turned around, apologising profusely while Ginny squealed with malevolent delight. He could hear her laughing hysterically in the background as he apologised.</p>
<p>“It’s fine.” the waitress replied, in a way that made it clear that it was <i> absolutely not fine </i> at all. </p>
<p>“Sorry,” he continued, unphased. “It’s from The Office, though! Have you seen The Office?” he asked, with a cocky smile in place, as though he hadn’t literally JUST been introduced to the show himself.</p>
<p>The waitress looked at him unamused. “No.” </p>
<p>Ginny couldn’t hold back a snort of delight, but decided to save her idiot from dying of embarrassment. “Do you have baby back ribs?” she asked the waitress, trying to get back to the order.</p>
<p>“Yup, you want anything to start?” she answered Ginny with a smile.</p>
<p>“Can you tell me what Awesome Blossom is?” Ginny responded excitedly.</p>
<p>The waitress looked at her oddly, but continued professionally, “It’s battered onions in a petal shape - think like onion rings, but not in a ring shape. Comes with ranch.” </p>
<p>Her explanation was very helpful. Ginny had previously thought that it would have been something like nachos. She really liked the look of their nachos. But she HAD TO try the awesome blossom. Because they were extra awesome.</p>
<p>“Yeah, I think we’ll try the Awesome blossom. Should we share it or do you want something else to start as well?” She asked Marcus, who had become very quiet and red since pissing off their waitress. </p>
<p>Luckily, the prospect of food seemed to perk him up again and he glanced back at the menu to double check his order, “Oh! Yeah, can I have the nachos to start and the ribs as my main, please? Thank you.” </p>
<p>After the waitress took their menus and left, Ginny burst into hysterical laughter, trying and failing to contain her mirth. “That was amazing!” she wheezed once she was done laughing. She wiped the tears from her eyes, and looked across at Marcus, expecting him to be annoyed or embarrassed.</p>
<p>Marcus didn’t look upset or embarrassed though. Far from it. He looked like he wanted to take a mental picture of this moment so he could hold on to it forever. He seemed to permanently have a little half-smile on his face when he was with Ginny. He looked like he couldn’t believe that this was real, that she was here, with him, on a date.</p>
<p>He was still smiling as he slowly leaned in to kiss her, and all thoughts of laughter and embarrassment left Ginny as her body was flooded with a new kind of warmth. He kissed her firmly, pressing their entire bodies together on the seat as he leaned into her more and more. The hand cupping her jaw moved back to lace through the hair at the back of her neck, lightly scratching her scalp as he ground into her, pushing her up against the wall on the other side of the booth.</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>Ginny let out a moan as he trailed kisses down her jawline, to her neck, loving the feeling of his hands roaming freely along her thighs and up her torso. He sucked lightly at the skin on her neck before pulling away, leaving a peck on her lips. </p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>She was ready to pull him into another kiss, but he pulled away from her entirely.</p>
<p>NOOOOOOOOOOO. Was he still doing the touch embargo?? EVEN THOUGH THEY WERE ON A DATE??</p>
<p>“I’ll be right back,” he whispered against her lips before placing another chaste kiss on them.</p>
<p>“Nooo, stay!” she whined, not caring how needy and desperate she sounded. She wasn’t going to ask him to like… straight up fuck her in front of all these people in a restaurant! But kissing was fine! Kissing was good. “I’ll be good, I promise,” she continued teasingly, trying to trick him into leaning in for another kiss.</p>
<p>“You can be good when I come back,” he murmured against her lips, placing another quick kiss on her lips before standing from their booth and heading to the back of the restaurant.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0063"><h2>63. Chapter 63</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>At this point, this should go without saying, but just to reiterate: DO NOT READ THIS IF YOU ARE NOT OLD ENOUGH TO WATCH PORN! (Or if you're in public)</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“HOW are you still eating?” </p>
<p>“I TOLD YOU, you have to be strategic with your eating. I love ribs. I knew I’d love the ribs, so I didn’t eat all of my starter or my chips to make sure I had enough room for all the ribs. Are you gonna finish that?” Ginny asked with a grin. She was probably, unintentionally, reenacting the Latrell date from White Chicks right now, but she didn’t care. She LOVED ribs.</p>
<p>“You ate some of my nachos, though! I think I’m going to explode” Marcus complained as he passed her the last of his ribs. He was low-key impressed that this tiny girl was able to out-eat him. It shouldn’t have been a turn on to see her absolutely demolish a plate of ribs, but the way she slowly licked the barbecue sauce off her fingers was almost obscene. </p>
<p>He gave her his ribs, partly because he was full, and partly because he wanted to watch her eating for as long as he could.  Did that make him some kind of pervert?</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>Probably.</p>
<p>He didn’t care though. </p>
<p>She smiled, bringing his plate closer to herself and giving him her plate. “You can have the rest of my chips if you want. See, can’t drink a bunch of drinks and fill up on chips!” she lectured. “That’s how they get you. You’ve gotta eat all the best bits first, and leave the rest,” she nodded sagely before diving in to eat another rib.</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>Marcus smiled as he watched her do a happy little dance while she munched on her rib. He had never, in his life, thought that a person could be cute while they were eating. Yet here he was, sitting, watching this beautiful girl excitedly eat her ribs, with a smile on his face. </p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>“So, in your infinite wisdom, did you remember to save room for dessert?” He asked once she had finished the ribs in front of her. </p>
<p>“Mmmm, that depends,” she responded, licking her fingers slowly. Marcus was absolutely certain that she was doing it on purpose, and he could feel the effects it was having on his body.</p>
<p>“On what?” he asked, as he took a sip from his drink, trying to distract himself from the feeling of all his blood rushing south.</p>
<p>“On whether we’re having sex after!” she responded with a smile, wiping her hands and mouth delicately with a wet wipe. In her best Michael impression, she continued unphased, “I’ll probably get the soup, or a salad… something light.”</p>
<p>Marcus choked on his drink, not having expected that answer, and Ginny looked at him in shock.</p>
<p>“Oh my God, I’m so sorry!” she exclaimed as she patted him on the back. “It was just a badly timed joke! Are you okay?” she asked.</p>
<p>“Yeah, sorry. Just.. went down the wrong hole,” he wheezed. Ginny, mortified, just kept rubbing circles in his back. <i> ‘So much for sex without consequences.’ </i> she thought to herself.</p>
<p>She had nearly killed poor Marcus because of her insatiable libido. She needed to chill out before she drove the poor boy to an early grave.</p>
<p>Once he recovered, he casually said, “Well, I guess we should ask for the cheque now.”</p>
<p>“Oh?” Ginny responded, not wanting their date to be over so soon. It had been really fun, she thought. And she didn’t really want to go back home yet.</p>
<p>“Well, yeah. I assume you meant that you didn’t want to get too filled up on dessert if we’re going to be having sex, right?” His tone was teasing, but Ginny could see from the intense way he was staring at her lips, that he wasn’t really joking at all, despite the devilish smile on his face.</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>Fuck.</p>
<p>No one else would be able to get away with saying something so ridiculous, but he made it sound so incredibly sexy.</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>This boy was really going to be the death of her.</p>
<p>-</p>
<p>When they got back to the bike, Ginny expected to be directing back home, so she was surprised when Marcus handed her his phone with a new location entered into Waze.</p>
<p>“Uhhhhh… I thought we were going… home?” Ginny asked, trying not to make it sound like she was in a massive rush to go and have sex with him even though she actually <i> was </i> in a massive rush to go home and have sex with him.</p>
<p>“Mmm. I just have one more thing planned before we head home.” He promised, kissing her on the lips before putting on his helmet and mounting the bike behind her. </p>
<p>Ginny could feel him pressed up against her back, and she felt the familiar surge of power and lust that she was coming to associate only with the boy whose hands were currently squeezing her towards his crotch. Ginny let out an inaudible moan when she turned on the motorcycle, unintentionally grinding back into Marcus’ hard cock, which cause another flood of warmth to fill her lower abdomen.</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>Fuuuuuuuuuuuuck.</p>
<p>Maybe she should take care of that before riding. She’d never ridden horny before and she didn’t  know how much of a distraction it would be - sitting with Marcus’ hands all over her, knowing that his hard cock was being pressed against her.</p>
<p>That couldn’t be safe, right?</p>
<p>She rested her hand on one of his hands as she ground back into him, slowly manoeuvring it down towards her center. Marcus growled and gripped her firmly around the hips as he realised where she was trying to lead his hands. </p>
<p>Marcus reached forward to turn off the motorcycle so that Ginny could hear him ask, “Do you think you can drive us there? It’s only a 10 minute ride, but you seem… distracted.” he groaned as she pushed further back into him, rocking herself against the seat while her legs were spread wide open.</p>
<p>His hand was resting, almost innocently, between those two legs, gently cupping her mound as he spoke to her through gritted teeth. “Ginny. I need you to answer me verbally, now. Can you navigate us to this location? Or do you need me to drive?” she was moaning as he placed soft kisses on her neck, thrusting up into his hand so she could feel the friction of his fingers rubbing against her.</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>“I just need to come. I’m so close. Then I’ll - ah! - be alright. I just didn’t - uhhhhhh- expect to feel like that when I turned on the engine,” she panted as he started rubbing against her in earnest. “Fuck, so close Marcus. Please!” </p>
<p>She was ever so polite when she needed to come, Marcus noted to himself with a smile. He reached under her panties quickly, enjoying the soft feel and making a mental note to have a look at them later, so he could insert his fingers into her. She came with a grunt, almost as soon as he started thrusting his fingers inside her, and she rocked her hips harder into him as he thrust his cock against her ass.</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>Marcus loved seeing how affected Ginny was by his presence, how reactive she was to his touch. He loved feeling her walls clamp around his fingers as she came all over him. Most of all, though, he loved the shocked, aroused expression on her face whenever he licked her come off his fingers. Unfortunately, he couldn’t afford to get her worked up again this time, so he discretely cleaned his fingers with his tongue while she recovered from her orgasm.</p>
<p>Fuuuuuck, he loved her taste. He was absolutely determined to taste her come directly from its source by the end of the day. He had been thinking about it non-stop since they had been together for that glorious weekend, and he felt like he was finally worthy of it. Worthy of her. He just needed to make it to the end of their date.</p>
<p>“Mmmm thank you,” she moaned, interrupting his thoughts and pulling her dress down slightly. Marcus turned the engine back on, and chastely wrapped his arms around her waist, making sure not to rub his erection against her.</p>
<p>“Any time, Miller.” he responded, placing a little kiss on her shoulder. “Now, are you ready to go?”</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Most of my (non-pornographic) Marcus and Ginny GIFs were made by filmmakingismylife16 on tumblr. I don't know how to link the tumblr account, but you should check it out! Their GIFs are amazing! They've got an entire series called "marcus baker looking at ginny miller" and it is LITERALLY my favourite thing to look at.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0064"><h2>64. Chapter 64</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>After a quick, but tense, ride which involved a lot more driving off-road and through forest areas than Ginny had anticipated, they pulled up to a beautiful lake, surrounded by hills and trees.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Ginny dismounted and removed her helmet as soon as she was able to, shocked into speechlessness by the scene before her eyes.</p><p>“Marcus!” she whispered, afraid to disturb the peaceful ambience surrounding the lake. “It’s… beautiful!” she exclaimed, still in shock because of the sight in front of her. “I… I didn’t even know America could be this beautiful? It looks like… it’s untouched by civilisation. It’s just so… beautiful!”</p><p>When she was finally able to rip her gaze from the sight before her, she looked at Marcus gratefully, beaming. “I can’t believe you’ve shown this to me! It’s… breathtaking!” </p><p>Marcus seemed to be avoiding looking at her and Ginny could see the hint of a blush on his cheeks. She walked up to him until she was standing directly in front of his face, smiling up at him.</p><p>“Really, it’s… perfect! Can we just… sit by the lake? For a while?” she asked, now unable to tear her gaze away from the beautiful boy standing in front of her. The expression on his face was so vulnerable, so… raw. Ginny had no idea what it meant but she felt like she could stare at it for hours and hours until it became clear to her. </p><p>“Yes! Uh, yeah. Hold on.” He went back to the bike and emerged with a large, black duffle bag, pulling a large quilted blanket from inside. </p><p>“Awwww, you’re so prepared! This is adorable! And you packed a little bag and everything!” She cooed at him, causing him to glare at her with embarrassment.</p><p>“Don’t be mad! This is the best thing anyone’s ever done for me! I mean, I was ready to call it the best date ever before we even got to Chili’s! You let me ride your motorcycle all day!!! That could have been IT and I would have been happy,” she teased, leaning up to kiss him. “Really, this has been <i> so perfect, </i> Marcus. You really didn’t need to put so much effort into dating me!” </p><p>
  
</p><p>She leaned back, still grinning. Ginny thought she’d probably be grinning forever, after today. Her cheeks were burning already, unused to using these smiling muscles for so long. It was definitely worth the pain though.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Come on! Let’s go find a good spot!” she exclaimed, grabbing his hand and pulling him towards the lake. At first, it had seemed like a decent distance to run - the lake had looked so beautiful and so close! </p><p>However, taking into account the fact that Marcus was carrying two large bags and Ginny was dragging him by the arm, they were both exhausted before they even made it half way. </p><p>Huffing and puffing, Ginny brought them to a stop while holding onto her sides and complaining, “Damn, we are SO out of shape! Do you want me to carry one of those bags? I’ve gotta stop moving or my heart will fall out of my chest!” </p><p>Marcus, barely breaking a sweat and able to breathe completely normally, smiled and rubbed Ginny’s back while reassuring her, “Oh, no, I think I’ll be okay,” while shooting mildly concerned looks in her direction. “How about we walk the rest of the way?” </p><p>Ginny, still struggling to catch her breath, responded, “Yeah. Okay. What about that area over there by that tree?” She suggested, pointing to an area with a group of large trees that they could sit under, slightly out of range of the crowd of people.</p><p>As soon as they got under the shade of one of the trees and Marcus placed the blanket on the floor, Ginny flopped on it like the run across the field had actually killed her. “This isn’t right. That run can’t have been more than a mile. I’m so out of shape! I feel like Gimli when they’re trying to chase the hobbits back to Isengard.” </p><p>“We dwarves are natural sprinters!” Marcus exclaimed as he plopped down next to her. “Water?” he offered her from his magical bag of mysteries.</p><p>“Awwww! And you put the water in the thermos to keep it cool! Have I told you how hot it is when you demonstrate how smart you are?” She leaned up to kiss him with a grin. </p><p>“Well, you haven’t said it, but… you’ve made it pretty obvious.” he replied with a smile. Ginny pulled back and looked up at him suspiciously.</p><p>“What… what do you mean?” </p><p>“Well, you’ve been really… randy… ever since I joined your AP classes,” he trailed off looking embarrassed. “And, you know… what happened in Chemistry yesterday…” </p><p>Ginny let out a mock gasp as she pointed up at his face, “Marcus Baker, are you BLUSHING right now?” giggling as he tried to hide his face. She pulled him back down to her and then cupped both sides of his face so she could turn him to face her. “Hey. You know I’m not just feeling horny because you’re proving to me how smart you are, or whatever, right?” </p><p>She was starting to get concerned that Marcus might be getting the wrong idea about what she saw in him and she wanted to nip that line of thinking in the bud. She knew first hand what his lack of self-esteem could do to his reasoning skills.</p><p>“Yeah, of course,” he responded far too quickly.</p><p>“Marcus, if we were both in remedial classes all day together, I’d be just as horny as I am when we’re in AP classes together. It’s because you’re there next to me, touching me and breathing near me and just generally being irresistible. I mean, I love that you spend time studying with me, but that’s just because it allows us to spend more time together.”</p><p>Marcus paused for a long while, looking at her with scrutiny to make sure she wasn’t just trying to make him feel better. “Are you- it’s --” he seemed like he was struggling to articulate his thoughts, but Ginny was just sitting there patiently waiting for him to verbalise what he intended to say. He let out a frustrated sigh and just asked, “Really? Are you serious? You’d still like me if I was failing all my classes?” as if that were the most ridiculous scenario he could think of.</p><p>Ginny smiled, not knowing if she should answer seriously, or start taking the piss out of him for being such an idiot.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Obviously, she decided to take the piss out of him.</p><p>“Awww, Marcus! I don’t like you because you’re smart!” she teased, “I like you because you have a pretty face. And mad finger skills. I don’t care if you can barely read or form a sentence. Your value is ONLY in your beauty,” she leaned in whispering as she placed a gentle kiss on his lips.  </p><p>“In fact,” she whispered, moving them into a position so she could lie on top of him, rubbing her whole body against his. “I really hope this little nerdy, no-touching phase ends soon, because I kinda liked it when you were the bad boy who just fucked anything that moved.”</p><p>As she was talking, she trailed kisses all along his neck and jawline, loving the feeling of how his body tensed and he grabbed her ass cheeks, grinding her crotch into his hard cock. He moaned when she gently bit and sucked on his ear, and pulled her harder into him.</p><p>Ginny loved the feeling of him rubbing against her, but there was just a random evil part of her brain that was telling her to ruin this beautiful moment, and for some mad reason, she decided to listen to it. “Mmmm actually, that reminds me of something I often thought about when we first met. Do you wanna know what I was thinking?” she whispered seductively in his ear.</p><p>“Nnnnnggg yes!” Marcus responded, clearly not thinking with his brain at all, because he should have known that the girl grinding on top of him was a devious bitch whose mind he should NEVER want to explore.</p><p>“Mmmm, I was wondering if the fact that I had a crush on both you <i> and </i> Max would be considered incest. And that made me think: have you ever wanked while thinking about Max? Even accidentally?” She asked, then squealed with delight when Marcus physically threw her off his body.</p><p>She lay in a heap, giggling, as he sat up and faced her looking both horrified and incredulous. “GINNY. WHAT?! NO!!!” he all but screamed at her, causing her to cackle even harder.</p><p>“Cool! Good to know!” she wheezed out, still laughing at how quickly he went from ‘ready-to-bone’ to ‘get-away-from-me-because-sex-is-disgusting’. “Aaaah, sorry sweetie, I honestly couldn’t resist,” she laughed, wiping the tears from her eyes.</p><p>“NOT cool, Ginny.” he shuddered, moving away from her as though she would pounce on him at any moment. </p><p>“Awww, come on! I was joking! But you do have to admit that you are both INCREDIBLY attractive people…”</p><p>“Ginny, I will never admit to that, ever. Now I’m placing a ban on ANY family talk at all, whatsoever, for the rest of our date day!” </p><p>“Boo! You’re no fun. I can admit that my mom and dad are both attractive people even though I don’t want to bone either of them!” she responded with a pout.</p><p>“Yeah, well, how would you like it if I asked you about having sex with your dad while we were… doing things?” he asked with narrow eyes. Ginny hung her head in shame and tried not to gag.</p><p>“Not good,” she admitted with a pout.</p><p>“Well. That’s how I feel now!” Marcus exclaimed, dramatically folding his arms over his chest and turning away from her with a sniff.</p><p>“I’m sorryyyyyyyyyy!! It was Evil Ginny! She made me say it! I didn’t want to!” Ginny pleaded as she moved closer to him. “I’ll never mention Max, or my initial crush on her, again, while we are doing things. I promise!” </p><p>She drew a little cross on her chest, right above her heart, but that still wasn’t thawing the ice in Marcus’ expression.</p><p>“What can I do to earn your forgiveness?” She pleaded, kneeling in front of him with the most forcibly adorable pout on her lips, “I’ll do anything!!” </p><p>
  
</p><p>Marcus unfolded his arms and placed one hand on his chin, feigning a deeply thoughtful expression. “Anything?” he asked, in a suspiciously eager manner.</p><p>“Um, anything within the law. And within reason. And it can’t involve causing physical harm to myself or others,” Ginny clarified warily. She had played truth or dare with her mom - she <i> knew </i> her limits. “Or property damage!” She added, remembering when her mom had dared her to egg a neighbour's house because they were being assholes.</p><p>Marcus’ expression grew concerned at Ginny’s stipulations and she just said, “My mom,” with a serious nod, conveying everything he needed to know about the matter.</p><p>“That’s fine. It’s just a simple thing you’ll need to do, if you really want to earn my forgiveness,” he started with a mischievous grin, and Ginny was seriously starting to regret everything in her life that had led to this moment. She nodded warily, signalling for him to continue with his request.</p><p>“All you have to do is jump in the lake” he finished with an innocent smile.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Seriously, I just don't even need to make Marcus x Ginny gifs anymore. filmmakingismylife16 on tumblr has got ALL the skills.</p><p>(Although I did make the one of Ginny pouting up at Marcus, because I loved that scene so much!)</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0065"><h2>65. Chapter 65</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“WHAT do you MEAN I have to jump in the lake?? It’s the middle of November!” Ginny screeched.</p>
<p>“Well, I didn’t tell you to talk about my sister while you were on top of me,” he responded, uncaring.</p>
<p>Ginny glared at him, stumped. Technically, it didn’t violate any of her stipulations. Damn. But it was going to be SO COLD.</p>
<p>“Do I have to dunk my whole body in?” she asked, just to clarify. </p>
<p>“Mmmm, no, actually. You don’t have to jump all the way in, but you <i> do </i> have to go at least up to your waist. Clearly, you need to cool yourself, and your filthy mind, off in the lake!” he grinned smugly. </p>
<p>Ginny groaned and looked up at the sky for strength, before she grit her teeth and started pulling off her dress.</p>
<p>“Woah! Woah, what are you doing there?” Marcus asked, panicked, putting his hand over hers to stop her from stripping down in the middle of a public space. </p>
<p>Ginny narrowed her eyes and looked at him like the dumbass he was pretending to be. “What do you mean what am I doing here?! I’m not jumping in the lake with my clothes on… I’ll freeze to death!?” </p>
<p>“Wait, can’t you just… I dunno, lift it up so it doesn’t get wet?” </p>
<p>Ginny rolled her eyes and responded, “No, Marcus, this isn’t some bullshit movie where the girl is all graceful and elegant and can stop her shit from getting wet! Even if I held it up to my EYEBALLS, I can guarantee the entire thing will be soaking wet by the time I get out. I’ll just take it off, run waist deep into the lake, and then come back! Easy peasy!” </p>
<p>They were literally right next to the lake and there was no one else around. It was fine! </p>
<p>Marcus stood up to stop her again, shifting from foot to foot and trying not to look at her. “No, I don’t - I didn’t think it through. I’m  not used to hanging out with girls like this - it was dumb. Please don’t-” he cleared his throat and looked away, blushing.</p>
<p>“MARCUS BAKER, are you afraid of seeing me in my underwear??” Ginny gasped, laughing out loud. She got closer to whisper as though she were telling him a giant secret, “Your body parts have literally been INSIDE my body. You’ve seen it all!” she teased, delighted that he was still so innocent even after everything they had done.</p>
<p>“It’s not… I mean, I know that!” He started, flustered. “I just.. What if someone sees you? Or they come to this area and don’t realise that you’re-- that we’re ?? I don’t want you getting hurt or caught,” he finished lamely, and Ginny smiled up at his adorable little face.</p>
<p>“Look, if someone sees me while I’m running into the lake and running back out again, it’ll be the best fucking day of their entire life and they should count their lucky stars,” Ginny explained with her hands on her hips. “Secondly, if you don’t want me to get caught, then turn around and play look out!” she ordered him over to the tree and twirled her fingers around so he would turn around.</p>
<p>Ginny chuckled to herself as she unzipped her thigh high boots. She probably shouldn’t have worn her fluffy pink thigh socks, but they were her favorites because they were so soft! As she neatly folded them and put them in a pile, she glanced up to see Marcus watching her from the tree. She smiled up at him and waved.</p>
<p>“Anyone approaching?” she whisper-yelled at him, laughing as he blushed and turned around. Honestly, she was still wearing all her clothes. He was blushing because he saw her feet? Come on, Marcus.</p>
<p>“Oh, er, no. There’s actually no one even remotely close… but I’ll still, uh, keep an eye out,” he called back, still facing the other direction. “You really don’t have to do this, you know! I was joking, I never expected--”</p>
<p>“Well, this will teach you to never give me a dare you don’t expect me to do!” she called out as she pulled her dress over her head. She was tempted to sneak up on him while his back was turned… really tempted. But the last time she listened to the evil little voice in her head, she ended up thrown on her ass and now she had to jump in a lake to make up for it.</p>
<p>So, instead of sneaking up to Marcus, Ginny chose to run at full speed into the lake, not stopping until she was covered with water up to her chest. She had expected to freeze to death from the moment her skin touched the water, but incredibly, the water was only slightly cooler than the air temperature. Once she started moving around, she realised that it was actually pretty nice.</p>
<p>“You know, if there’s no one out there for you to watch, you could come and join me!” she yelled to Marcus. He took one more look around the tree before he turned and approached Ginny by the lake.</p>
<p>“I don’t know, it looks… cold.” he said hesitantly, despite the fact that he was already taking off his boots and socks.</p>
<p>“Eh, you get used to it,” Ginny replied as she waded around, not taking her eyes off of Marcus for a second. </p>
<p><i> He </i> might not feel comfortable with openly ogling her, but she had no shame in admitting that she liked watching him get undressed. She was curious about what kind of underwear he might like wearing as she didn’t remember getting a glimpse of them that first time they had had sex. And she really hadn’t seen him in any state of undress since then. Well, apart from that time at Blue Farm.</p>
<p>Okay, <i> now </i> she was blushing and looking away. She <i> still </i> couldn’t believe she had done that! When she dared to look back up at him, she could see that he had noticed her hesitance to look at him, probably thinking that she was embarrassed that he was getting undressed. Ginny narrowed her eyes and glared at him to let him know that that <i> wasn’t </i> the case.</p>
<p>She could watch him get undressed all day! It was just, the memory that had thrown her off guard a bit, that was all! He laughed to himself, shaking his head as he threw his shirt and jeans in a pile on the blanket, running towards the lake in only his black boxers. </p>
<p>Marcus didn’t stop running until he was standing right in front of Ginny. He lifted her so she could wrap her legs around his waist and kissed her gently on the lips.</p>
<p>“Hi,” he whispered, smiling at her as he pulled away.</p>
<p>“Hi,” she replied, eyes widening as she felt his hardness pressing against her panties. </p>
<p>“You look, um - I like your, er-” Marcus swallowed, leaning back slightly so he could take in the view of Ginny’s matching lacy bra and knickers.</p>
<p>“Mmm, I was hoping you’d get a chance to see them today,” Ginny said with a smile. “Although, I didn’t think we’d be quite so… public, with it.” She looked around knowing that she couldn’t see anyone so they likely couldn’t see her either, but there was always a chance that someone could come around the corner.</p>
<p> “Should we head back to the blanket so we can dry off?” Marcus suggested, moving them around in a circle as they stood entwined together.</p>
<p>“Well, you still haven’t told me that you forgive me for earlier yet,” Ginny responded with a pout. “I hope I haven’t done all this for nothing!”</p>
<p>Marcus let out a groan, “Ginnyyyy! I forgave you almost instantly! I told you I was joking…” he complained and Ginny laughed, pulling him into another kiss.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Yeah, so, I didn't manage to finish the date in just 5 chapters... it's still going...</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0066"><h2>66. Chapter 66</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>After using a second blanket to dry themselves, Ginny and Marcus lay huddled close together under the quilted blanket, trying to feel some kind of warmth again. While Ginny had insisted on putting her dress and thick socks back on, Marcus had decided to stay in his shirt and boxers under the blanket, hoping that he could give the boxers more time to dry before putting on his jeans.</p>
<p>They were both seriously regretting taking a dip in the water.</p>
<p>“Okay, okay, maybe it wasn’t a great idea for us to both get in the water,” Ginny admitted as she shivered in Marcus’ arms. “It wasn’t so bad at first!”</p>
<p>In all honesty, Ginny wasn’t actually all that cold, now that she had her dress and socks on, but she liked the way Marcus held her tightly against his chest while she shivered.</p>
<p>She rolled on top of him, under the pretense of trying to keep warm, although she really just wanted to get into a better position for kissing. Once she leaned down to press her lips against his, Marcus immediately sat up with Ginny still in his lap.</p>
<p>He placed his hands on her hips and slowly started moving her backwards and forwards, making sure her entire cunt was rubbing up and down his hard dick. Ginny couldn’t help the little gasps and whimpers that left her mouth as she felt her clit running against his boxers, knowing full well that there were only two very thin bits of material separating him from being inside her.</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>The slow grinding was driving Ginny mad. She tried to push down harder on him, or move her hips faster, but Marcus’ grip was too strong. He held her tightly, gripping her ass cheeks hard as he ground her slowly against him, looking up into her eyes. The feeling was so intense, Ginny couldn’t bring herself to look away from his eyes, even to plant a kiss on his lips.</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>She just kept on letting him move her body however he wanted it, however he needed it. When she felt like she was getting closer and closer to coming, Marcus was somehow able to tell, probably based on the desperate cries leaving her lips.</p>
<p>He flipped them over so that he was lying over her, kissing her fiercely as his hands roamed up her thighs and beneath her dress. His hands felt so hot as he grabbed and squeezed her, thrusting between her legs while letting out ragged little breaths. </p>
<p>Out of nowhere, Marcus stopped them mid-kiss and pulled away. Ginny tried to chase his lips, or even flip them back over so she was on top again, but Marcus was holding her firmly in place.</p>
<p>UGH. NOW what?! The expression on her face must have clearly communicated her displeasure, because he smiled and leaned in to give her a small kiss on the lips.</p>
<p>“I just need to check what time it is,” he said, looking down at his phone. His eyebrows raised slightly and he looked towards the direction of his clothes pile. “Wanna go for a walk?” he suggested, as though they hadn’t been RIGHT in the middle of something INFINITELY funner than going for a walk.</p>
<p>“Really, Marcus? A walk?” Ginny asked, frustrated out of her mind. “We were just-- !! And then you just--!! We have to go for a walk right now??” She couldn’t even form a coherent sentence. “Is this about your weird obsession with becoming friends and avoiding touching each other? Because it’s really starting to piss me off.”</p>
<p>She didn’t mean to come off so strongly, especially since he had been getting her off whenever she really needed it for the past couple days. But… with the picnic and the field and the looking at her in her underwear, she just thought that maybe, he might have felt ready to be with her? She didn’t really understand what was holding him back.</p>
<p>“Look, forget it. Let’s go on the walk. Just let me grab my boots and my coat.” She muttered, trying not to ruin what had been such a beautiful day, just because she was feeling insecure and rejected. There was absolutely no logical reason for her to feel that way. Marcus had been incredible, and she needed to stop.</p>
<p>“Ginny, wait--” He started, seeming like he was getting ready to apologise as he pulled his jeans up his legs. Ginny stood next to him and put her hands on his lips.</p>
<p>“No, really. I’m not mad, just… confused maybe? I’m not really sure why you don’t want to be… physical, I guess. Today has been so perfect, though. I don’t want to ruin it. So, if you’re not ready to be with me, I will respect your decision. Besides, it will be nice to walk around the lake!” She smiled up at him and leaned in to give him a peck on the lips, before putting on her boots.</p>
<p>“Ginny, it’s not that I don’t want to be with you,” Marcus explained, sounding nervous and a bit guilty. “It’s just… I had this whole thing planned and I wanted it to be… perfect for you. For us. And it’s been so tempting to just, forget it and have you every possible way I could have you. I’ve been jerking off at least five times a day, just to stop myself from entering you and coming straight away. The things I’ve imagined…” He sucked in a deep breath and closed his eyes.</p>
<p>“I just, I want to be able to take my time with you. And really make you… enjoy it,” he continued hesitantly, wrapping his arms around her waist. His eyes were pure fire as he looked down at her and his voice was a gravelly mess that was really doing things to her insides. “There’s just one more thing I need to do before I’ll be ready for you. Can you just wait for one more thing? I promise,” he growled, pulling her into his cock with one hand and grabbing the back of her neck with the other, “I promise it will be worth the wait.” </p>
<p>He pulled her into a deep kiss when he finished talking, which made Ginny forget about everything in the world other than the boy in front of her. Fuuuuuuuuuuck he was good at kissing.</p>
<p>He looked at her a bit nervously when they pulled apart - probably afraid that he had been coming on too strong. Ginny smiled up at him as she whispered, “So, you’ve been wanking yourself raw every day? Just so you could try to keep your hands off me?” She pushed her entire body against him as she was speaking, enjoying the delicious feel of his hard cock rubbing against her through his jeans. </p>
<p>“Uhh, well - I wouldn’t quite say <i> raw, </i> but yeah, that’s pretty much the gist of what I’ve been doing since we started, um, talking again.” </p>
<p>“Define: talking again,” Ginny pressed.</p>
<p>“Well, since the library really. It got a lot worse once we started studying together. I’ve had to make sure I come right before I see you in the mornings, and usually as soon as I get home… and uhh… strategically throughout the day as well.” </p>
<p>He was blushing again and Ginny had to use all of her willpower to stop herself from giggling at him.</p>
<p>“Okay… so, when you say strategically throughout the day, you mean…?” </p>
<p>Marcus rolled his eyes, knowing he’d have to give the little pervert every detail of his masturbatory habits. “Okay, like yesterday I wanked before we walked to school, and then again when we got to school, and then again after Chemistry, and before we walked home… and then, obviously, when I got home as well.” </p>
<p>“WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU MADE YOURSELF CUM AT SCHOOL?! WHEN? HOW?! WE LITERALLY SPEND EVERY MINUTE TOGETHER??” Ginny found this HILARIOUS. She couldn’t believe he had been sneaking away for a TACTICAL WANK so frequently and she had had no idea! No wonder he had been able to control his libido so well when he was around her. There was no more come left in his body!! She absolutely could not control the gleeful laughter that burst out of her at that thought.</p>
<p>“Well, not when I go to the toilet…” he muttered, only partly embarrassed.</p>
<p>“I have to admit,” Ginny continued, trying not to imagine him sitting on a toilet, pants down, rubbing his cock while thinking about stroking her legs. TOO LATE. AND IT WAS A HILARIOUS IMAGE. She burst into another fresh wave of laughter before continuing, “Sorry - I do have to admit, I am very impressed that you’re able to come so many times in a day,” she tried to murmur suggestively, but she was still trying to hold her laughter at bay.</p>
<p>“You wouldn’t be, if you saw how quickly I came each time. After Chemistry yesterday? I barely got my cock out before I was coming, thinking about how it felt to have you coming on my fingers.” </p>
<p>Ginny blushed at his crude phrasing, even though she was fully aware that she had said way worse to him, on many occasions.</p>
<p>“Mmmm, I guess, to be fair, I did get you pretty worked up that morning, so I don’t blame you. Although, I do I wish you would have let <i> me </i> finish you off instead,” she pouted up at him.</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>Marcus raised an eyebrow at her. “You know, it’s a bit more messy when I come than when you come,” he explained, as though she had no idea how a penis worked. Which… well, she theoretically knew about ejaculation and whatnot, but technically, he was probably right. She didn’t really know about quantity or volume or whatever. </p>
<p>She thought for a moment before looking up at him saucily, “Even if I were to swallow it?” she asked innocently, “It wouldn’t be messy at all if you came in my mouth and I swallowed it, right?” </p>
<p>Ginny smirked up at the faraway look in Marcus’ eye. He was definitely remembering their time in Blue Farm. “Oh well,” Ginny continued on, moving away from him, “We can think about that later, I guess. Didn’t you say you wanted to go on a walk?” </p>
<p>Marcus let out a frustrated sigh and then looked at his watch. “Yeah, come on, let’s go for a stupid walk,” he muttered as he grabbed Ginny’s hand and dragged them away from their tree. Ginny giggled as she followed him around the lake, but had to run to keep up with his long strides. She was pretty sure this was going to be the shortest walk in the history of walks.</p>
<p>-</p>
<p>“Okay, my turn. So…” Ginny continued their 20 questions as they walked around the park, “Who do you prefer: Dwight or Jim?” </p>
<p>“Easy. Dwight!” Marcus replied quickly, enjoying the feeling of having Ginny pressed against his side as they walked around the lake. Her hand was in his back pocket and his arm was around her shoulder and they were casually talking about everything and nothing all at once. He felt… free. In a way he hadn’t felt in a long time. Like there was finally a chance for him to  be happy without having to worry about something taking it away. Being with Ginny made him feel safe in a way that no one else could make him feel. He wasn’t going to ever let anything come between them again.</p>
<p>“Really? You prefer Dwight?” Ginny asked perplexed. Usually, she found, people preferred Jim in the first few seasons because he was the fun, cool, uncaring guy who didn’t really care about his job. It usually took a while to warm up to Dwight’s intensity. “Why?” she asked, curious to hear his reasoning.</p>
<p>“Well, I think it’s kinda cool that he likes his job so much, you know? Like, they work for a paper company, possibly the most boring job in the world, but he takes it so seriously. He just wants to do his best all the time! And Jim’s a bit of a dick,” he responded after a moment.</p>
<p>“Wow, that’s so… insightful. Okay, your turn,” she was quietly impressed that Marcus had thought so deeply about the characters after watching the show for only a few seasons.</p>
<p>“Who is less crazy: Kelly or Jan?” he asked and Ginny laughed out loud.</p>
<p>“OH MAN. No spoilers? Uhhhh Jan. Jan is definitely less crazy than Kelly. 100%. I mean, Jan has her moments but Kelly is just like… on another level.” Ginny laughed as she remembered the pure insanity  that was Kelly Kapoor. “Okay, next question. Who is your favourite of Michael’s lovers?”</p>
<p>Marcus smiled and thought quietly for a moment. “Well. Jan was very good at making candles. And singing ‘Son of a Preacher Man’ in the most uncomfortable way… but, just for the fact that she called Michael an irresistible sexy jungle cat? Has to be Holly.” he finished off by whispering in her ear, <i> “He can put both legs behind his head, you know?” </i> and laughing at the shocked look on Ginny’s face.</p>
<p>When she still didn’t reply or react in any verbal way, he stopped to look at her more closely. “What?” he asked, trying to figure out what he had said wrong.</p>
<p>“You watched ALL THE WAY TO THE HOLLY EPISODES AND YOU DIDN’T TELL ME??” Ginny screeched at him once she snapped out of her shock. “How much have you watched, Marcus??”</p>
<p>He looked at her pityingly, and it reminded her of the scene where Oscar asks Dwight where he’s had sex in the office.</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>“How much, Marcus?” she asked again, only quieter.</p>
<p>He looked her dead in the eyes and responded, “Oh, it seems like you already know how much.” And Ginny burst into laughter. God damn, he knew exactly what she had been going for, the absolute asshole!</p>
<p>“You’ve watched the entire thing?? AND YOU DIDN’T THINK THAT WAS INFORMATION I SHOULD HAVE BEEN PRIVY TO?? God!! There were so many good bits I wanted to experience with you for the first time!!” She was frowning and hitting him on the arm as she spoke, but she wasn’t all that mad really. She could understand how addicting the show was and she couldn’t really blame him for bingeing it all in one go.</p>
<p>“Oh, uh, well. You see, I watched most of it while you weren’t talking to me? I wasn’t really in a fit state to enjoy most of it when I watched it the first time round, so I will probably enjoy watching it again with you? I just finished rewatching season 2, which is why I had the idea to take you to Chili’s! I barely remember anything from Seasons 3 to 5 - I was err, getting high and watching it when I couldn’t sleep. Are you mad at me?” </p>
<p>He seemed so desperate to make her understand that Ginny didn’t even try to pretend that she was mad at him. “Mad that you enjoyed my favourite show so much that you watched the entire thing without me, even when you couldn’t talk to me about it?” she asked, smiling up at him and cupping his face in the palm of her hand. “No, I’m not mad at you. At all. And… I’ve loved everything about today.” She swallowed, knowing that she had already admitted that she loved him, but still uncomfortable saying it out loud. </p>
<p>So, she pulled him into a kiss instead.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0067"><h2>67. Chapter 67</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>IT'S FINALLY THE FUCKING WEEKEND SO I FINALLY HAVE TIME TO WRITE AND MAKE SOME FUCKING GIFS!!!!1 </p>
<p>Also, you would not BELIEVE how much time I spent crying at work this week. Like, literally bawling my eyes out. People started to get used to talking to me while I sniffled and cried like a little bitch - they had to just keep on talking to me as though nothing was happening! Because I am a walking mess.</p>
<p>ANYWAY.</p>
<p>Okay, so, this is the part of the date I’ve been most excited/nervous to write! I don’t usually do this, but I would recommend you listen to the following songs by Delphine Coutant while reading this chapter: La plaine, Liseron et orties, and Nous Josephine. Just listen to them on repeat. Over and over. All day.</p>
<p>Major thanks to @keberin for giving me the idea for this part of the date!!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Just as Ginny was preparing to suggest they head back to their picnic site, she noticed  a suspiciously sizeable crowd of people gathered further ahead on their path around the lake. Their walk around the lake so far had been entirely isolated, not another soul in sight.</p>
<p>Ginny grabbed Marcus’ hand and pointed to the group of people ahead. “What do you think is going on over there?” she asked, getting onto her tippie toes to see if she could get a better look. “What do you see with your tallness?” </p>
<p>Marcus squinted ahead, looking into the distance. “They’re taking the Hobbits to Isengard!” he declared urgently and smiled down at Ginny when she punched him in the arm. </p>
<p>“Ow, violence!” he complained, “Okay, okay! It just looks like a big picnic or something. Wanna check it out?” he asked, rubbing his arm even though Ginny knew she hadn’t punched him hard at all.</p>
<p>He was <i> such </i> a drama queen.</p>
<p>She didn’t respond verbally, just grabbed his free hand and pulled him in the direction of the crowd, rolling her eyes and shaking her head in exasperation. </p>
<p>“Oh, wow! These guys really take picnics to the next level,” Ginny exclaimed as she looked around, noticing the people sitting in groups with huge spreads laid out in front of them. “Wow, those guys even brought some kind of raft! Look, it’s massive!”</p>
<p>She watched as a group of people hauled a huge wooden raft towards the lake from a group of vans.</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>Marcus dropped his bag heavily on the ground, drawing Ginny’s attention back in his direction. “Oh, sorry,” he apologised shiftily. “Do you mind if we stop here for a while?”</p>
<p>Ginny rushed to pick up his bag, feeling guilty for making him carry it the entire way. “Yes! I’m sorry! I can carry it on the way back if you want?” she suggested, earning her a smile.</p>
<p>“Yeah, maybe. Let’s go find another tree to sit under,” he suggested, looking around. </p>
<p>When they finally found the perfect spot to sit and enjoy the views, far away from the large crowd of picnickers, Ginny looked around suspiciously. “Um, Marcus?” she asked, lightly.</p>
<p>Marcus looked up from where he had been lying on the floor with his eyes closed. “Yeah?” </p>
<p>“Are those… speakers?” she asked, pointing to the black boxes located strategically around the field they were sitting in.</p>
<p>“Huh? Oh, I dunno. Maybe.” He responded casually, closing his eyes with a little smile on his face. His answer was just a bit too casual, almost forced.</p>
<p>“Uh huh. What about that group over there hauling what looks like a giant piano to that raft?” Ginny asked, leaning down so she could examine his face closely.</p>
<p>Too late, she realised her mistake as Marcus pulled her into a deep kiss, rolling them so she was lying on her back while he lay on top of her. Ginny let out a shaky breath as they separated, smiling up at him goofily. She kept talking, even though he was kissing her very thoroughly in between her sentences. “Mmm don’t think,” kiss, “You can distract me,” kiss, “from what I’ve seen!” she warned, putting her hand against his chest and stopping him from leaning into her again with a glare.</p>
<p>Marcus pushed through her hand and bit down on her neck, causing Ginny to let out a squeal as she tried to protect her ticklish neck from the assault. “HEY! NO! WE HAD A TRUCE!!” she screamed as  he continued trying to tickle her. When she tried to fight back, he held her hands above her head and ground his hips into her.</p>
<p>The laughter on Ginny’s face immediately died as she felt how hard he was against her. She hadn’t noticed her dress riding up her thighs until she felt him pressing against her bare knickers. The thin lace was doing nothing to protect her from the feeling of his cock rubbing against her through his jeans. Ginny’s breath hitched as she registered the flush of wetness escaping her.</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>She half-heartedly tried to free her wrists from his grip, but all that really ended up doing was rubbing her against him more firmly, drawing a deep growl from the back of Marcus’ throat. Ginny swallowed hard and bit her lip. She never took herself as someone who would enjoy being restrained, but the way her body was reacting right now suggested that that might be something she needed to explore later.</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>Marcus leaned in to kiss her softly on the lips, and it completely wiped every thought out of Ginny’s mind. She closed her eyes, relishing in the feeling of his hands running along the skin of her torso under her dress, the way he gripped her by the waist as he thrust into her. The pressure of his lips, alternating between rough, desperate kisses and soft, gentle ones.</p>
<p>Ginny groaned and put her hands over his to stop him from reaching his fingers into her panties. That move had seemed to snap her back to the present, as she remembered that, unlike their previously isolated picnic spot, their current location was near a densely populated field. </p>
<p>Ginny’s breathing was heavy as she looked around to make sure that no one had managed to get a glimpse of Marcus’ fingers pushing her panties to the side. She looked up at him, smiling, as her hand still gripped his firmly in her own. </p>
<p>Marcus cleared his throat, finally remembering where they were. “Oh, uh. Sorry,” he apologised and smiled sheepishly before leaning in to give her a small kiss on her forehead, slowly removing his hands from under her dress. “I guess I got a bit carried away,” he continued, moving back into a sitting position.</p>
<p>Ginny pursed her lips to try to hold back a giggle as she whispered, “Do you need to go sneak off for a tactical wank?”. Unfortunately, after the word “wank” left her mouth, she immediately let out a peal of laughter, still amused by his earlier admission.</p>
<p>“Ughhhh I’m going to regret telling you about that, aren’t I?” Marcus groaned, rolling his eyes and trying to subtly adjust himself in his pants.</p>
<p>“How did you not regret it from the MOMENT it left your lips?? It’s the most hilarious thing anyone has ever told me!” she grinned up at him.</p>
<p>“It’s not that rare… most guys do it,” he mumbled under his breath.</p>
<p>“Yeah, but FIVE TIMES?! And at SCHOOL? What, do you all have a secret masturbation club in the toilets?” Ginny’s laughter was bordering on hysterical now, but she just couldn’t stop herself. She felt bad when she saw how quiet and uncomfortable he was becoming. “Okay, okay. I’m sorry,” she said, pouting.</p>
<p>“I’ll only mention it a couple times a day,” she promised, “Like, five times, maximum,” she said, snorting with laughter. “Okay, that was my third mention for today! I’ll be good, I promise!” she pleaded when she saw the betrayed look crossing his face.</p>
<p>“You’re mean.” he complained, and Ginny smiled knowing that he was absolutely correct. </p>
<p>“Hey. You knew I was mean before you fell in love with me. That’s your problem now,” she teased. He narrowed his eyes at her but leaned in to kiss her nonetheless. </p>
<p>When they pulled apart, Ginny smiled up at Marcus cheekily and asked, “So… you never told me: what was with the piano and the speakers?” She burst into another fit of giggles when Marcus groaned and threw himself backwards so he was lying on his back on the blanket.</p>
<p>He dramatically covered his eyes with his arm and sighed, “Fine. Since you cannot wait another TEN MINUTES to find out the surprise, I will tell you. There’s a musical group from France who tour around various lakes and perform on a floating raft. It’s really cool, and magical, and it was supposed to be a surprise but you are too observant so, there it is.” </p>
<p>Ginny frowned briefly, looking around. “That is the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard. Musicians ON a lake? With a piano?” she scoffed, disbelievingly.</p>
<p>Marcus smiled, still covering his eyes with his arm. “You’ll see it soon,” he shrugged. </p>
<p>Before Ginny could give a good retort, their conversation was interrupted by the sounds of, what appeared to be, a mic check going through the speakers.</p>
<p>Ginny’s eyes widened as she looked around in panic.</p>
<p>“Marcus!! You can’t be serious. Musicians on a lake?! They’re going to die! How do the instruments not fall in?” she was rapidly firing questions at him as she took in the scene around her.</p>
<p>“They’ve done it loads of times. They have special equipment for it and everything, it’ll be fine!” he said, sitting up and pulling her into a position allowing her to sit between his legs with her back pressed against his front. He wrapped his arms around her and pointed to where the musicians were warming up with their instruments, ready to head into the lake.</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>“They’re actually doing it?! They have a fucking GRAND PIANO on that raft! Look at that lady, she’s just standing on a wobbly bit of wood, holding a violin!” Ginny exclaimed, pointing frantically at each musician she could see.</p>
<p>Her tirade was abruptly stopped when the musicians started playing their first song. Ginny sat, eyes wide, mouth agape, as she experienced the sounds of Delphine Coutant and her musicians playing for the first time. She seemed to be floating as she moved along with the singer, following her every movement with her eyes.</p>
<p>Ginny had never heard anything so soothing or beautiful before. And she had heard the elves singing in Lothlorien. Frequently. Her whole heart felt full - of what, she didn’t quite know yet, but it was this unimaginable lightness that she had never experienced before.</p>
<p>There was a big screen near the lake which showed a close up video of Delphine singing, and Ginny couldn’t take her eyes off of the mesmerising woman, who seemed to float while she sang.</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>When Marcus started to trail light, delicate kisses up her neck while running his hands up and down Ginny’s torso, she could barely register the sensation. She was so focused on the beautiful melody coming from the woman on the lake, she was barely cognizant of anything else that existed. Ginny felt like she was the only person in the world other than the incredible musicians in front of her.</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>Which was ridiculous, because there were so many people sitting in between her and the lake.</p>
<p>Marcus kissed the area right beneath Ginny’s ear, and she let out a soft gasp. He opened his mouth and started saying, “It’s not too bad, is--” </p>
<p>“Shhh!!!” but Ginny cut him off quickly, not wanting to be reminded of anything else that existed in the world, apart from the people playing on the lake. </p>
<p>Until now, she had never understood how the Ancient Greeks believed that magical women in the sea were able to lure sailors to their deaths. But Ginny could feel it now. The way the music could make you feel invincible, but desperate for it to never end at the same time. She would be ready to climb into that lake herself, fully clothed, if they asked her to. This siren’s song was dangerous, and Ginny wanted to leave everything behind so that she could follow it forever.</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>Ginny didn’t realise that she had been crying, until the song ended and Marcus started kissing the tears off her cheeks.</p>
<p>They sat together in silence for most of the show, Ginny wrapped in Marcus’ comforting embrace, afraid to make any sounds or sudden movements that could break the spell being cast on them by the incredible magicians in front of them. </p>
<p>
  
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>It's honestly breath-taking, and I've only watched the videos. Can you imagine actually being there?! Mad!</p>
<p>Anyway, if you want to watch the videos, type 'Piano Du Lac' and la plaine, or liseron et orties into youtube. Enjoy!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0068"><h2>68. Chapter 68</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Posting all my written chapters today. IDGAF.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Ginny started to become more accustomed to the music after an hour or so. That’s when she started to really notice how closely she and Marcus were sitting. His entire body was pressed against hers, and she could feel the way his hands were wrapped possessively around her. One of his hands seemed to be resting on her bra without his conscious awareness. </p>
<p>She let out a happy sigh and leaned back further into Marcus’ embrace. She nuzzled into his neck, enjoying the feeling of the music in the air coupled with Marcus’ hands running under her dress. Ginny couldn’t remember a time she had ever felt so… content. She started swaying slightly, still feeling as though she were floating on air.</p>
<p>Every touch on her skin sent tingles all through her body. The goosebumps that spread on her arms when she first heard Delphine singing on the lake were making their presence clearer every time Marcus lightly touched her legs, or her stomach, or her neck. Ginny felt like all the teasing, and touching, and talking from the past few weeks was building up inside her. It was almost too much. Nothing was happening, and yet her body felt like it was burning up.</p>
<p>She turned away from the lake, wrapping her legs around Marcus’ waist so she was straddling him, looking into his eyes. He looked… desperate. Like he was forcing himself to hold back every instinct in his body. He was gritting his teeth and his eyes were tightly shut. It almost looked like he was physically in pain.</p>
<p>“Open your eyes,” Ginny whispered into his ear as she leaned in towards him. </p>
<p>He slowly did as she asked, leaving Ginny completely breathless as she gazed into his eyes. How was this beautiful boy all hers? What had she done to make him feel so much love for her? There was no doubt in her mind that he loved her more than anything else. She could see it in the way he looked at her - like he had never seen anything like her in his life.</p>
<p>Ginny slowly moved closer to him, maintaining eye contact the entire time, until their lips met in a gentle kiss. It was soft and sweet, unhurried - like what she had always imagined her first kiss would be like. They touched each other tentatively, unsure where to put their hands. It was awkward and beautiful, but overwhelmingly loving.</p>
<p>However, it soon grew into something a lot less innocent, as their touches started to grow more focused and confident. Marcus was pulling Ginny against him harder and harder, making delightful little grunts and moans when she rubbed against his hard dick. Meanwhile, Ginny was desperately close to coming, just from the friction of her clit rubbing against his jeans. She was grabbing at his face whilst grinding on him, crushing their lips together as she frantically chased her orgasm.</p>
<p>She paused, pulling away from Marcus and looking at him with concern.</p>
<p>“If we keep going, I don’t know if I’ll be able to stop,” she gasped into his ear. Their foreheads were resting together as they panted heavily, trying to catch their breath.</p>
<p>“Ginny, I--”</p>
<p>“I know you wanted it to be… perfect. And I don’t know if - here, outside, fully clothed will be what you--” Ginny couldn’t finish her sentence because Marcus was surging towards her kissing her fiercely once again.</p>
<p>“Ginny. I don’t care about where, or how we do it. I think-- it’s just… I wanted to make sure I could prove that I was worth - more. I wanted you to know that it would be <i> different <i> this time. That <i> I </i> would be different…” His expression was so pained, so raw.</i></i></p>
<p>
  
    Ginny could almost feel the turmoil he had been putting himself through. All this time, she had thought that he was criticising how easily she had given herself to him… how rushed and unromantic their first time together was. But he had just been beating himself up about it this whole time? Like they hadn’t already moved past that?
  
</p>
<p>
  
Surely, he must know how differently she thought about him now. He had to realise that they had been through so much since that first time, they had shared so much of themselves. If he really thought he still needed to somehow prove his worth to her…
  
</p>
<p>
Ginny let out a frustrated groan.
</p>
<p>
She pinched the bridge of her nose and closed her eyes, trying to breathe calmly so she didn’t lose her shit because of Marcus’ insecurities. <i> He was just a dumb boy. They had no idea how to deal with their feelings. It wasn’t his fault - it was society’s. </i> She tried to repeat this mantra in her mind to calm herself.
  </p>
<p>
  All she could think, though, was how much time they had already wasted - avoiding being together because of one reason or another. Of <i> course </i> Ginny fucking knew he was <i> different. </i> She wouldn’t have let him get close to her <i> family </i> if she still thought he was an uncaring fuckboy who had used her to cheat on his girlfriend.
</p>
<p>
She tried to put a sweet, reassuring smile on her face before she responded, so as not to scare him into thinking something ridiculous, like she was still holding onto an ancient grudge. <i> Honestly, </i> she had been <i> with him </i> every moment for the last week. They had been inseparable. How could he think that she still thought so poorly of him?
</p>
<p>
 “Marcus,” she started, annoyed but unsurprised that her voice came out as more of a frustrated growl than the soothing reassurance she had been going for. His eyes darted towards her like a scared rabbit ready to flee. </p>
<p>
She tried again - calmly, soothingly. “Marcus, I promise you, I wouldn’t let you anywhere near me if I didn’t think you were worth… all of this. Okay?”</p>
<p>He nodded hesitantly, so she continued.
</p>
<p>“I know you’ve done some dumb shit, but… you’re <i> my person. </i> You have to trust me when I say I’ve forgiven you or we’ll never be able to move past it. I <i> love you, </i> Marcus. You understand that, right? I don’t just love going on dates, and having someone pretty to look at. I love your thoughts, and your worries, and your feelings.” Ginny was mortified by how disgracefully sappy she was being, but she realised that this wasn’t about her feelings. This was about making sure that Marcus understood how much he meant to her. Which… yeah, she definitely hadn’t been expressing out loud. 
</p>
<p>“I love how <i> affected </i> you are by my presence… You listen so intently, you know? Whenever I’m talking to you, it’s like I can see all my emotions mirrored on your face. My pain is your pain, and… I’m never afraid that you’ll think less of me when I say mean things or do something without thinking.” She was blushing furiously and refusing to look at him, but she needed to get all of this out there so he knew what was happening in her mind. </p>
<p>“I trust you, completely. I don’t even trust my <i> mom </i> completely. But… I don’t feel like I’ve really experienced something until I share it with you. You’re - god, this is so damned cheesy - but, you’re honestly the first thing I think about when I wake up. I just want to check my phone as soon as I’ve opened my eyes to see what you’ve said to me, even when I’m tired as hell.” Ginny smiled, remembering how he had called her this morning and then just snuck into her room when she didn’t pick up.
</p>
<p>A thought suddenly occurred to her, “How do you always manage to message me before I wake up, by the way? You never struck me as an early riser… that’s not the point though. Sorry,” she paused, trying to remember what she had been saying before. 
</p>
<p>“I just… I loved today. But… it wasn’t because we went somewhere to eat, and then sat near a beautiful lake, and watched this incredible performance. It’s because I got to be with you. If I spent this exact same day with anyone else at all, it wouldn’t… it’s not the <i> things </i> that made this so perfect. It was you. It’s always you…” she trailed off, not knowing what else to say. “That was… a lot of words,” she finished apologetically.
</p>
<p>She tried to move back so she wasn’t sitting directly on his lap anymore, but his grip tightened around her waist. Ginny didn’t want to look at him or be near him after being so embarrassingly honest. She really just wanted to disappear briefly and reemerge when no one could remember any of the things she had just said. Maybe she’d learn to speak Spanish and move to Puerto Rico.
</p>
<p>
  <i>
    <i>Marcus finally broke the silence, whispering, “You’ll have to look at me eventually.” His voice was thick with emotion, and Ginny stubbornly refused to acknowledge him in any way. She crossed her arms firmly over her chest, pouting down to the floor.</i>
  </i>
</p>
<p>“I know you hate <i> public displays of emotion </i> Ginny Miller, but… that was, wow. I mean, I knew I was lovable - obviously. Who could deny all of this? I just can’t believe--”
</p>
<p>
  <i>
    <i>She knew he was goading her, pushing her buttons on purpose, but she couldn’t resist looking up to glare menacingly at him. As soon as Ginny’s head lifted, Marcus was pushing his lips on hers, mercilessly crushing her to him. </i>
  </i>
</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>
  <i>
    <i>He wasn’t giving her space to breathe, or think, at all. </i>
  </i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>
    <i>His hands furiously explored every inch of skin available to him.</i>
  </i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>
    <i>Ginny felt a rush of heat spreading through her entire body. She had gone from embarrassed to DTF in less than one second. </i>
  </i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>
    <i>She grabbed Marcus just as desperately as he was holding her, pulling him closer. Nothing felt like it was going to be enough. She could barely feel the cool breeze against her fiery skin as Marcus pulled her dress up around her waist.</i>
  </i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>
    <i>All she could feel was Marcus. His fingers digging into her ass as he ground up into her. His breathing, heavy in her ear as she ran her fingers through his hair.</i>
  </i>
</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>
  <i>
    <i>Marcus rose up onto his knees, pushing Ginny down onto her back before diving back in to claim her lips again. The music was blaring through the speakers, a high-pitched, angelic melody which seemed to fit perfectly with their current emotions. She couldn’t hear her own moans over the sounds around her, but she really hoped there wasn’t a sudden silence any time soon.</i>
  </i>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0069"><h2>69. Chapter 69</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Bowm chicka wom wom - be prepared. Do not read this chapter if you are in public or if you're too young to watch porn!</p>
<p>To be fair, if you're too young to watch porn, YOU SHOULD NOT BE READING MY WORK. GET OUT OF HERE. THIS IS NOT FOR YOU!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Ginny wanted to rip the clothes off of Marcus’ body and sorely regretted the fact that they were in public right now. Marcus pulled back, seemingly having read her thoughts, moving instinctively to start removing his shirt, before looking around and realising that there were other people around them.</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>Without missing a beat, he dropped his shirt back down, but moved to undo the buttons on his pants. Ginny looked around and sighed in relief when she saw that there was no one behind them or looking in their direction. She bit her lip and nodded, prompting him to continue, while she stealthily moved her panties to the side under her dress.</p>
<p>Ginny lay back feeling giddy with anticipation. It was finally happening!! After hours of touching and hand holding, teasing and light stroking, Ginny was finally going to feel Marcus inside her. She was ready to burst, and he’d barely even touched her. She could feel the cool breeze on her cunt as she spread her legs wider. </p>
<p>The way Marcus was looking between her legs was making her feel slightly hesitant. He was just… staring. And breathing. Not saying anything or making a move to touch her in any way.</p>
<p>Ginny slowly started to close her legs as she looked around uncomfortably, but Marcus quickly reached out with his hands to stop her. </p>
<p>“Sorry, I just--”</p>
<p>“No, I was just--”</p>
<p>They both stopped talking, awkwardly embarrassed. </p>
<p>How had they done this before? </p>
<p>Ginny couldn’t remember being this awkward the first time they had been together. She looked up at Marcus, concerned that they might not work physically, now that they were so close as friends.</p>
<p>Did he know too much about her now? </p>
<p>Was he less turned on by her after spending so much time with her as a friend?</p>
<p>“Don’t,” he whispered into her ear as he leaned over her. “Don’t overthink this. You’re… I just wanted to take it all in. I need to remember this moment, forever, Ginny. Can I… would you mind if I - I want to taste you, Ginny.” His voice was so husky and eager, it made Ginny instinctively want to squeeze her legs together to ease the pressure. But Marcus was lying in between her legs, stopping her from getting the friction she needed.</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>“Um, what if someone looks this way?” she whispered, anxious that he wouldn’t like the way she tasted or smelled or felt on his tongue. Would it ruin the mood if she brought that up?</p>
<p>“No one will be looking that closely. They’re too far away,” he replied as he kissed down her neck, to her chest, kissing her over her dress.</p>
<p>“Wait! Um. I… we’ve been walking around and we were in the lake! I’m all sweaty and gross, you can’t--”</p>
<p>Marcus stopped immediately and looked up. “I won’t do it if you don’t want me to. But… I’ve been thinking about this so much, Ginny. I’m... Please. Just one taste,” he pleaded. </p>
<p>Ginny hesitantly nodded her head, leaning back fully to rest her head on the grass underneath her. Her entire body was tense, waiting for him to change his mind, to be grossed out by her. She grabbed the blanket and threw it over Marcus’ head, just in case anyone glanced in their direction. The sun hadn’t even set yet, for christ’s sake! </p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>The moment his lips brushed against her slit, Ginny felt a powerful spike of pleasure shoot through her entire body. The touch was so soft, she could have sworn she’d imagined it, if not for the way her entire being seemed to rejoice at the sensation. Her back arched off the floor and she pushed her pelvis towards his face, desperate to feel his lips on her again. Ginny had never experienced anything even remotely as pleasurable as this.</p>
<p>She could tell that she was an absolutely sticky, sodden mess down there. Marcus had been teasing her all day and her body had been responding zealously each time he touched and stroked her. Ginny didn’t even have time to really ponder that thought, as Marcus returned to softly licking at the area between her legs.</p>
<p>

  
</p>
<p>The music, coupled with the breeze on her skin, and the sensations between her legs as Marcus teased her mercilessly with his tongue, made Ginny feel as though she were having an out of body experience. She had no control over the sounds leaving her lips, grateful that the speakers would drown them out before anyone else had a chance to notice them. She writhed and grunted as pleasure spread from her pussy, up her abdomen. Her whole body was ready for the release as Marcus licked at her ravenously.</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>What had started as gentle, teasing kisses and licks had grown into a desperate devouring of her come. Marcus seemed to be in a frenzy, gripping her tightly by her hips and pulling Ginny closer and closer to his mouth. His lips were worshiping her. He sucked her clit, swirling his tongue around it, until Ginny was ready to burst, then quickly moved away, licking down to the very bottom of her labia before moving back up and starting it all over again. It was driving Ginny mad. She wanted to grab onto his head and hold him to her clit, forcing him to keep licking and sucking until she came with a scream.</p>
<p>Ginny could feel her legs shaking as Marcus feasted on her, his hands roaming more adventurously around her ass and stomach, now that he knew she would be pushing herself into his mouth just as much as he needed her to. Just as she started to think the feeling couldn’t get any better, Marcus started to gently, probingly explore her folds with his fingers while he licked at her clit. </p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>She hissed in pleasure as his fingers entered her, finally giving in to the urge to grab onto his head and hold him close. Ginny was <i> so close </i> to coming. There was no doubt that she had never felt pleasure building inside her to such a crescendo. She didn’t know what would happen when she was finally pushed over the edge. </p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>It - it was too much! Was she going to be able to stop herself from screaming? Would everyone know what was happening under the blanket? Ginny couldn’t even bring herself to care about that - she was enjoying the sensations too much.</p>
<p>Marcus’s lips were continuously stuck to her clit, sucking softly while his fingers plunged inside her. Ginny let out a high-pitched wail as the angle of his fingers switched, hitting a spot that sent a pulse of warmth up her pelvis and lower abdomen.</p>
<p>“Marcus! I- I’m” something was happening, Ginny was sure of it. Was she going to wet herself?! She frantically started pulling his head off her, unable to articulate what she thought was happening. If she pissed into his mouth, she was moving to another continent and never speaking to anyone ever again.  </p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>Unfortunately, trying to pull Marcus’ head off her was not working. He groaned into her as she pulled his hair, sending vibrations straight to her clit. He started licking the area all around her labia, sucking up every bit of come pouring out of her as his fingers continued their assault. </p>
<p>“Fuck - Marcus, please - <i> please” </i> she begged, not knowing whether she wanted him to stop or keep going forever. Her body was so tightly wound, she felt like she was ready to snap, as Marcus forced her closer and closer to oblivion. Nothing existed anymore, other than his lips and his tongue and his fingers. </p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>“Ah!” was the only sound Ginny was capable of producing when she finally fell into bliss. It was a high pitched gasp, and then silence. Everything was still as she experienced nothing but wave after wave of excruciating pleasure. Breathing became a foreign task, her thoughts emptied completely. She was peacefully floating alone in a pure, white abyss, with nothing to disturb the nirvana she was experiencing.</p>
<p>Seconds, hours, maybe days passed. </p>
<p>Ginny lost all concept of time and space as her body shook and spasmed with fresh waves of erotic pleasure.</p>
<p>When she eventually came back to earth, she felt completely drained. </p>
<p>What, THE FUCK, had just happened to her?!</p>
<p>Ginny couldn’t do anything but smile lazily up at Marcus as he kissed his way back up her body. His face was glistening with the evidence of how much she enjoyed her first experience of cunnilingus. Ginny couldn’t even bring herself to be grossed out by the idea that her come was all over his face - she was too boneless and relaxed to care.</p>
<p>In fact, seeing how Marcus relished in licking her flavour off his lips made her quite curious about the taste. She had no delusions that she would taste like a delicious fruit cocktail, but he seemed to be genuinely enjoying what he was doing.</p>
<p>Without another thought, Ginny pulled Marcus into a deep kiss, tasting her flavour on his tongue and feeling its slippery remains on his face. She was entirely enveloped by the scent and taste of something that was uniquely <i> her. </i> It was a smell she recognised from all the times she had been horny out of her mind - a kind of musky, tangy, salty sweetness that wasn’t unpleasant in the slightest. It didn’t have much of a flavour at all, and yet she found herself chasing the taste regardless.</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>Marcus couldn’t believe what he was experiencing.</p>
<p>He hadn’t expected Ginny to allow him anywhere near her after his mouth had so thoroughly explored her cunt - although, he couldn’t blame her for being so tempted by the taste of her come. There was something about the scent of her excitement, coupled with the feeling of it gushing out of her, that just drove him wild. He would have happily feasted on her for the rest of eternity, so he supposed he didn’t mind that she was desperately sucking every ounce of flavour from his tongue. </p>
<p>He pitied her a bit - that she would never experience the feeling and taste of her come pouring onto his eager tongue, allowing him to lap it up at his leisure. Sure, she’d be able to taste other pussies if she wanted to, but Marcus was certain that no one else could compare to hers. Her scent was something he’d never get sick of. It was equally arousing and soothing - something that instantly sent blood rushing to his cock, while simultaneously making him want to hold her softly in his arms, and tell her that he would love her until the end of time.</p>
<p>Tasting her was like tasting home. It didn’t matter what the actual flavour of her come was like. It was the memory of every time he had sat next to her, completely unaware that she was creaming herself because of his light touches. The only thing giving her away: the scent of her come as she breathed deeply, trying to focus on anything other than his teasing touches.</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>Tasting her was the tangible proof that she saw something in him that was worth something - that he was able to make her feel good, even if it was purely in a sexual way. With every drop of come falling onto his tongue, Marcus was tasting validation, accomplishment. It was a taste he would never tire of, though he had no way of explaining it to the girl who had brought so much joy into his life.</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>He could tell the moment she had begun to orgasm, even before her body tensed and she let out her adorable little gasp. Her inner walls had started to flutter lightly on his fingers and he started driving them deeper into her - more purposefully, more gently. He tilted her legs up, bringing his mouth down to her opening so he could catch the cascade of come flowing freely out of her. It had been glorious.</p>
<p>Marcus wasn’t even aware of what was happening with Ginny, as he was too busy feasting on the bounty flowing from her gorgeous cunt. He never wanted it to end, and for a while it seemed like it really wouldn’t. His fingers kept moving inside her as she writhed and moaned in pleasure, babbling sweet nonsense, prolonging the orgasm as much as possible.</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>When he felt her slowly coming down from her orgasm, Marcus gently withdrew his fingers but continued kissing the area around her slit, avoiding the area that might be too sensitive for her. He could feel her shuddering against him as the flow of cum seemed to slow, eventually coming to a stop. </p>
<p>Being able to kiss her lips again after gorging on her come was an unexpected pleasure, but Marcus shouldn’t have been surprised. Ginny had always managed to surprise him in the best ways, accepting his flaws and vices as though it were no big deal. <i> Of course, </i> he should have expected her to happily accept his kisses, even if they were accompanied by the flavour of her come. And <i> of course </i> she would eagerly lap at his tongue as though she, too, could not get enough of the flavour. He didn’t know if Ginny was even capable of shaming him for the things he enjoyed anymore.</p>
<p>There was no doubt left in his mind. He belonged entirely to the girl in front of him, and he would follow her anywhere in the world, as long as she’d have him.</p>
<p>
  
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  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Guys, I tried soooo hard to have this date complete on Chapter 69 because - well, <i> nice </i> - but the chapter was getting way too long. So I have split it into foreplay and then the actual *intercourse* will happen next chapter...</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0070"><h2>70. Chapter 70</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>NSFW</p><p>Forgive the nakey porn gifs. It is surprisingly difficult to find pornos where the actors are fully clothed, in a field, outside! What's up with that??</p><p>So, you'll have to just imagine that you've got x-ray vision and that's why you can see under the clothes and the blanket ;)</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>They lay together on the grass together for a while, just lazily kissing and stroking each other while enjoying the sounds coming from the musicians on the lake. The sky was a beautiful mix of oranges and pinks as the sun started its slow decline. Ginny couldn’t resist leaning on her side so she could stare down at Marcus. His eyes were closed and he had a half-grin on his lips as he followed the sounds of music.</p><p>She didn’t want to disturb him as he enjoyed the melodies in the air, but she also <i> really, really </i> wanted to kiss him. He just looked so peaceful and cute and happy and kissable! Fuck it, she leaned in and planted a sweet, gentle kiss on his lips, and smiled when she felt his half-grin grow into a fully blown beam against her lips. He put his hand on the back of her head, stopping her from pulling back from the kiss that was more of a melding of their smiles.</p><p>“Sorry,” she whispered against his lips, still grinning like a chump, “Your lips were calling to me and I couldn’t deny them.”</p><p>“I would <i>never </i> ask you to deny your need to kiss my lips,” he whispered back, not allowing their lips to part even a little bit.</p><p>“Mmm, but I feel like this is a bit excessive,” Ginny pointed out, considering the fact that Marcus was holding her head hostage because she foolishly decided to lean in to kiss him while he was relaxing.</p><p>“Nope!” he smiled before flipping them over so he was lying on top of her while they made out. </p><p>It wasn’t long before their heated kisses grew into something… more. Ginny could feel Marcus frantically grinding against her and realised that, while he had been getting her off all day, she hadn’t done anything at all to release his tension. Had he cum at all that day? Ginny had no idea.</p><p>
  
</p><p>She reached down to stroke her hand along his cock, marveling at  how smooth it was. He groaned as soon as he felt her fingers wrap around his dick and Ginny smiled as she led him straight to her dripping cunt. </p><p>Ginny looked into Marcus’ eyes cautiously, trying to silently ask if this was okay - if he was ready. No matter how needy she was feeling, she was determined to let him set the pace. </p><p>In answer to her unspoken question, Marcus leaned down to kiss her neck as he guided himself to her opening. Ginny let out a loud moan as his cock slowly entered her. </p><p>Even though she had been feeling slick and ready all day, his dick didn’t slide in as easily as she thought it would. She had to put her hand on his chest to stop him, and Marcus paused immediately looking at her with concern. </p><p>“I, um - it was, you’re just… Sorry, it hurt for a second! I think I just need a minute to get used to your… size?” Ginny winced, not wanting to ruin the mood, but also not wanting to be in pain.</p><p>Marcus let out a relieved sigh and stilled completely. After a moment, he shot her a reassuring look as he whispered, “I won’t move until you’re ready.”</p><p>And he really didn’t. Marcus was completely still while Ginny adjusted to his size. Looking up at him from this angle, Ginny could see the concentration on his face. She was looking closely to see if she could recognise any of the elements of the periodic table that she was <i> sure </i> he was reciting like a little nerd. </p><p>The painful stretching sensation started to ease as she smiled up at him, gently moving her hips to test out the sensations. When Marcus let out a deep groan, she moved her hips slightly more aggressively, trying to hint that she was ready for more. It was starting to feel… good. Really, <i> really </i> good. There was a heat growing deep in her abdomen, spreading through her body, and Ginny was desperate to feel more.</p><p>Luckily, either through desperation or as a result of his uncanny ability to just <i> know </i> what Ginny was thinking, Marcus was able to pick up her hints. He gently moved his hips back and forth, constantly looking at Ginny for reassurance that this was alright. Their gazes locked on each other and Ginny found that she couldn’t look away. Or breathe.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Every movement he made pushed him slightly deeper into her, and Ginny was starting to enjoy the stretched feeling. This felt intimate in a way that nothing between them had ever felt before. The way his breath fanned against her face as he slowly pushed into her; the yearning expression on his face as he took in every movement, every change in her face.</p><p>
  
</p><p>Nothing else existed in Ginny’s mind, apart from Marcus’ all-consuming presence. He was everywhere - inside her, on top of her, wrapped around her. She wanted more, needed him to be closer. She grabbed the back of his head, pulling him down into a kiss. </p><p>
  
</p><p>Ginny fucking <i> loved </i> feeling his lips against hers. It felt like a spark going off in her mind, every time they connected. The sensation seemed to be infinitely more powerful when their lips met as they were connected during sex. Bliss flooded her system as he ran his hands up her chest and back, grabbing her neck as he thrust into her.</p><p>“Mmmmm Marcus?” Ginny whispered into his lips. “Could you go… harder?” </p><p>“Nnnng Ginny, fuck.” he grunted as his thrusts increased in pace. Ginny squealed as their coupling became even more aggressive, sending spikes of pleasure throughout her body. </p><p>
  
</p><p>She gripped the collar of his shirt, pulling him deeper into their kiss as he crushed his body to hers. “Yessss, Marcus, fuck. More,” she begged into his ear, glad that the music was covering the sounds of their fucking. Ginny knew the music would be loud enough to drown out the sound of her screams, but she still worried that someone could glance in their direction and see what they were doing.</p><p>Of course, she wasn’t worried enough to actually stop or slow down in any way. “Uh, ah! Yes! Oh, please don’t stop,” she babbled incoherently. She was so focused on the sensation of being pounded into the ground, she almost missed the sounds of Marcus whispering into her ear.</p><p>She didn’t know if he was even conscious of the fact that words were leaving his mouth; they didn’t really make sense as coherent sentences. The snippets she heard almost brought tears to her eyes, and she wasn’t sure if she should stop him or wait to talk about it after.</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Fuck. Love you.. so much… Never let go… Please… Can’t without you… Need you-- always. Fuck, so good-- Don’t deserve-- Never deserve you… perfect. I-- <i> fuck, </i> so perfect. -- never get enough” he was panting and grunting into her ear, but Ginny could barely think past the feeling of him ramming into her over and over and over. He was hitting a spot that made her want to scream, and she almost had a sensation like she needed to pee again, but the overwhelming feeling of pleasure was enough to make her forget about it.</p><p>Ginny wrapped her legs around his waist, pulling him even closer to her as she desperately sought release. She was <i> so fucking close </i> she couldn’t stop the high pitched shriek leaving her mouth every time he fucked into her. “Ohhhhh fuck, Marcus. Please. So good. So close! Ughh” she gasped. “Love you. So much. Always,” she panted as he pounded into her, sending her over the edge, a shaking, flustered mess.</p><p>“Nnnnnngggg Ginny. Fuck. Gonna come. Ginny - gonna come in you. Fill you up. So fucking good, Ginny. Feel so perfect. Fuuuuuuck, gonna come. Ginny!” he talked her through her orgasm as he fucked her harder and harder.</p><p>Right when Ginny thought he was going to finish, he flipped them over, frantically moving her hips against him as he came. Ginny had never been on top during sex before, but the position changed <i> everything. </i> Marcus seemed to be hitting a whole new spot inside her, forcing a moan out of her mouth every time he bottomed-out into her. His hands on her hips were moving her forcefully, grinding her onto his cock in a delicious way that also stimulated her clit. She could feel him shuddering inside her as he came and his movements became more frantic, but Ginny couldn’t stop herself from grinding on him, even as his hands stopped moving her. </p><p>
  
</p><p>Leisurely, Ginny leaned down to plant a kiss on his lips as he continued to come into her while she rolled her hips on his cock. Uhhhhhhn it felt <i> so fucking good </i> in this position. She felt like she could just keep coming and coming and coming until the end of time. Every time one orgasm ended, she started building up to another.</p><p>Marcus’ hands started roaming up and down her back, pulling and squeezing at her as he recovered from his own orgasm. He started thrusting his cock into her in the same rhythm as he was thrusting his tongue into her mouth, and Ginny could feel the orgasm building to all new heights. </p><p>She screamed into his mouth as her entire body tensed on top of him, pushing everything into getting his cock as deep inside her as it would go. Every fibre of her being was concentrated on the feeling of Marcus’ cock pounding her through her most intense orgasm of the day. Ginny couldn’t move, couldn’t feel or hear anything outside of her orgasm.</p><p>
  
</p><p>When Ginny finally came down, the first thing she saw was the awestruck expression on Marcus’ face as he smiled lazily up at her. She leaned in to kiss his lips before rolling to the side so she could collapse onto the grass next to him. Immediately, Marcus wrapped an arm around her, pulling her to cuddle into his chest as he kissed her forehead.</p><p>
  
</p><p>The sound of the musicians playing on the lake finally filtered back into Ginny’s consciousness and she let out a sigh of contentment, snuggling closer into Marcus’ side. She looked up to see him smiling down at her while he played with her hair. The feeling of his fingers lightly stroking her hair and neck calmed Ginny in a way that it never had before. She felt… whole. Complete. And totally exhausted. She had no idea how long she lay there in Marcus’ arms before she fell asleep. It couldn’t have been more than a minute though. </p><p>“Mmm you fucked me to sleep,” she murmured into his chest. “Love you, Marcus Baker,” she smiled as she snuggled deeper into his chest.</p><p>
  
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  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>This isn't even the last chapter of the date. FML. This thing is never going to end... I'm just having too much fun writing it!!!</p><p>Coloured gifs came from filmmakingismylife16 on tumblr.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0071"><h2>71. Chapter 71</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>They stayed like that, lying together under the blanket, until the musicians had almost packed everything away and the sun was going down. Neither one felt ready to move, or even breathe, after the experience they had just had.</p><p>Eventually, Ginny broke the silence. “Marcus,” she breathed, her voice barely even audible. “That was…” she didn’t even try to think of a word to describe it. She just turned around in his arms and looked at him with an inscrutable expression. “What was that?” she whispered, still looking up at him with wonder in her eyes.</p><p>“I… I have no idea. That wasn’t what I was expecting… like, at all.” he responded, looking a bit shell-shocked.  </p><p>“It was… I just…” Ginny looked confused, “I feel like they must have been magical, right? Like, that woman - Delphine? She had to be some kind of fae. Humans don’t make those kinds of sounds.”</p><p>“I mean, I assume so. It was just…” </p><p>“Yeah…” </p><p>Marcus slowly lay back on the blanket, bringing Ginny down to lie on top of him. She rested her head on his torso and embraced the feeling of his chest rising and falling with his breaths, the sounds of his heart beat. She felt so… alive. And weirdly at one with nature.</p><p>She still felt like she was floating - she wondered if this was how it felt when people took drugs. If it was, she could understand the appeal. </p><p>“I love you so much, it scares me sometimes,” she admitted without looking up at him. “I’ve never felt anything even remotely like this in my life and I don’t know what I’ll do when it has to end.” Her voice was quiet, vulnerable. She never expected to share these thoughts with him, but they seemed to be bursting out of her.</p><p>Marcus stroked the back of her neck lightly with his fingers, staying silent for a moment.</p><p>“Why do you think this ever has to end?” He asked, not accusingly - he sounded partly amused and partly curious.</p><p>Ginny scoffed and rolled her eyes. “We’re still in high school, Marcus. How many people do you know who met their soulmate in high school and stayed with them for the rest of their lives?” She asked sarcastically. “Something always pulls people apart. Nothing lasts forever.” She hated how sulky and broody she sounded, but someone needed to be realistic in this relationship, and it clearly wasn’t going to be Marcus fucking Baker.</p><p>“Mmm maybe. But, it’s not… impossible. Sure, there are loads of people out there who can’t stay together for whatever reason. Do you think they feel about each other the way we feel about each other? I feel like I’ll never let you go. No matter what happens, I need you in my life.”</p><p>Ginny lifted her head to look up at him, ready to make a joke. She expected him to be smiling at her, teasingly. She didn’t think he’d be staring up at her with steely determination in his eyes. He couldn’t be serious, could he?</p><p>“Marcus, I--” she didn’t get a chance to finish her sentence because Marcus pulled her down into a fierce kiss, which Ginny returned eagerly. In no time at all, Ginny was straddling his waist with her dress hiked up above her hips. </p><p>Wow. Ready to go again? Really?</p><p>“Uhhhhnnnn Marcus, feels so good - uhhhh so good.” she panted into his ear as he ground her against him.</p><p>He kissed her neck harshly, sucking and biting at every bit of skin he could reach. Ginny had no doubt that he’d leave at least one mark on her neck before the night was over. He stealthily pulled his pants below his waist, allowing him to free his cock from its confines as Ginny slid her panties to the side.</p><p>They had to be quiet this time because there wasn’t any music to drown out their desperate cries, but they could also be more freely affectionate, as it was darker than before and there were barely any other people around them. </p><p>“Ah!” Ginny gasped as he shoved up into her with one smooth movement. Her pussy walls were still slippery and stretched from earlier, and she let out a low moan as he started moving inside her.</p><p>“You’re <i> mine </i> Ginny. I belong to you. Need you. Every day,” he grunted into her ear as he fucked up into her. Clearly, he was a talker. Ginny hadn’t anticipated this at all, but it was such a huge turn on. Hearing him claim her, desperately begging her to stay with him, sent a wave of warmth straight to her cunt.</p><p>It was hard for her to concentrate on forming words in response - she was so carried away by the feeling of his thick cock pounding into her. “Oh! Marcus. Love you. - nnnnng - so much. Harder. Please. Don’t stop!” </p><p>She was bouncing vigorously on his cock now, holding him by his hair as she rode him into oblivion. Ginny crushed their lips together as her orgasm washed over her, in an attempt to stop herself from screaming as she came. “UGH. FUCK!” she screeched as he flipped them over, riding her hard into the ground.</p><p>The movement had pulled him away from her lips and Ginny struggled to control the screams erupting from her mouth as she came on his cock. Instead of leaning down to shut her up with his lips, Marcus let his hand roam up her chest, briefly resting on her neck - which caused Ginny’s entire pussy to clench in anticipation - before reaching up to cover her mouth. </p><p>While still relentlessly pounding into her fluttering cunt, Marcus leaned down to whisper in her ear, “Shhh. Gonna make you scream for me. Yours - all yours, Ginny. Always - fuuuuck, need you.” His hand was still covering her mouth, but it wasn’t stopping the whimpers and moans that Ginny was making.</p><p>In fact, his dirty talk was pushing her closer and closer to another climax. Ginny never thought of herself as someone who would enjoy dirty talk, but hearing how the words seemed to burst out of Marcus without his permission… She definitely loved hearing him lose control. Too often, she felt that he was afraid to say how he really felt. </p><p>When he was inside her, though, it seemed that he completely lost his filter.</p><p>“Nnnng feel you. Coming on my cock. Squeezing me -- uhhhhh fuck. Want to stay here -- Uhhn Ginny -- forever. Inside you. -- so good,” he kept whispering absolute filth in her ear while he furiously drove into her, and Ginny was feeling complete sensory overload.</p><p>She screamed into his hand as her pussy clamped on his cock, sending a fresh wave of pleasure throughout her entire body. Mercifully, Marcus removed his hand from her mouth when her screams died down, replacing that hand with his lips as he fucked her through yet another orgasm. </p><p>Ginny felt almost hysterical as she came down, and the once-pleasant throbbing in her lower abdomen started to turn into something that resembled friction burn. She winced as Marcus pulled back from the kiss and he stopped immediately, looking at her with panicked concern.</p><p>“Ginny? What’s wrong?” he asked, refusing to move even slightly until she confirmed that it was okay.</p><p>“Nothing! Um, just a bit… sensitive? I guess. I’m starting to feel sore…” she trailed off, embarrassed and not wanting to make him feel bad. </p><p>“Shit. Want me to pull out of you?” he asked, looking more and more worried by the second.</p><p>“Maybe -- slowly? Um, sorry.” She closed her eyes tightly as he extricated himself from her throbbing vagina. She let out a sigh of relief when she felt the cool air hit her battered pussy lips.</p><p>“Never apologise,” he whispered against her lips with a kiss. “I’m sorry I hurt you.” </p><p>“No! It’s not-- I’m sorry you didn’t get to, um.. come.” she whispered, looking away from him entirely. Was she just a completely selfish lover? He had given her countless orgasms, but she couldn’t even--</p><p>“Errr I came. A lot. Probably before you came. I don’t think I’d be able to come again for a while…” he responded.</p><p>“What do you mean? Don’t guys stop, like, immediately after they come?” Ginny asked, confused.</p><p>“Awww, sweetie. You really do watch too much porn.” he replied jokingly. “No, we can still keep going after we come. It’s a bit uncomfortable for a while, but then it starts to feel good again so…”</p><p>“Oh.”</p><p>“So… was that… okay? For you?” Marcus asked hesitantly, pulling her back into a position allowing her to rest her head on his chest.</p><p>She beamed up at him in response. “It was… perfect. Definitely worth the carpet burn situation happening down there right now.”</p><p>Marcus’ smile was equal parts proud and relieved. “Great. Well, I guess there’s just one more thing we need to do before our date day is officially over!”</p>
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<a name="section0072"><h2>72. Chapter 72</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Nope! No, I’m calling it right here, Marcus Baker! This is ridiculous! I can’t take any more. PLEASE don’t make me do more date things!” she whined. “I just want to sleep!” </p><p>“I knooow,” he said soothingly, rubbing her back “I know, but we said we’d hang out at Brody’s tonight, remember? I don’t want your friends to think I’m stealing you away forever. We can share you,” he suggested as he placed a gentle kiss on her nose.</p><p>“Mmmm… No, mm sleepy and I need a shower,” she grumbled, unwilling to compromise. “Don’t care about friends. They’re stupid,” she yawned, cuddling further into his side.</p><p>Marcus sighed as she burrowed closer to him. He didn’t fucking want to hang out with her friends. But he also knew how possessive Max could be - if she felt like Ginny was ditching her for Marcus, she could be a real bitch about it. He didn’t want anyone making Ginny feel bad about them. About this. </p><p>“Yeah, they <i> are </i> stupid,” he agreed, smirking as she gave him a half-hearted smack on the chest, “But it’s your fault for befriending such a clingy group of people…”</p><p>“Ugghhhhhhh,” Ginny groaned. He knew she wouldn’t be able to disagree with him. Hunter was definitely the only decent human being in that group, the rest were brutal assholes and they both knew it.</p><p>“Sooo… should we go now? Or…” Marcus knew he shouldn’t be having this much fun torturing her about her friendship choices, but he couldn’t help it. </p><p>His friends were a hot fucking mess, but they were low maintenance. MAN and the Bro Squad were the most high maintenance bunch of drama queens he’d ever encountered. And they could get <i> real ugly </i> real quick if they were feeling rejected. Ginny wasn’t ready for their wrath. </p><p>“FINE. We’ll go. For one hour. We’ll say hi, snap some pictures, share in a joke with each person, and then leave. Hopefully, they’re already drunk or high enough that we’ll be able to slip in and out without too much drama.” Ginny groaned, getting up and adjusting her clothes.</p><p>Marcus pulled her back down for a lingering kiss. “It’ll be fine,” he promised.</p><p>-</p><p>It was not fine.</p><p>Everyone was wasted by the time they arrived. Max was in a corner, crying about something or other, with Abby and Nora stroking her batshit crazy ego. Brody and Hunter were playing beer pong and cheered, LOUDLY when they saw Marcus and Ginny enter. And Preston was playing CoD in the corner. </p><p>As soon as Ginny saw his sister crying, she dropped everything and ran to join her other sycophants in soothing her tears. So much for sticking together and leaving within an hour.</p><p>Marcus just straight up refused to join the beer pong travesty, so he was left to sit on the sofa and watch Preston getting owned in CoD. It was almost painful to watch.</p><p>“You’re seriously sniping right now? Are you just trying to obliterate your KD ratio? You’ll kill like one person if you’re lucky,” he growled after watching the shit show for five minutes.</p><p>“It’s a fucking skill. It requires practise and commitment. Not that you’d know anything about it.” Preston replied lazily, rolling his eyes as he got killed. Again.</p><p>“Oh, yeah, it’s working out real well for you. You’ve been killed three times since I’ve been sitting here. How many have you killed with your fucking sniper ‘skills’?” Marcus rebutted. None. The answer was none. </p><p>-</p><p>After Ginny had helped the girls to calm Max down, she got up to find Marcus and apologise for ditching him, literally the moment they entered the room. She quickly greeted Brody, and was stopped by Hunter, who was staring wide-eyed at the occupants of the sofa.</p><p>He held out a hand to stop Ginny from rushing forward when she heard Marcus shouting.</p><p>“WHY WOULD YOU SWAP A RAY GUN FOR A WEEVIL? ARE YOU TRYING TO GET US BOTH KILLED?”</p><p>“The ray gun is for lazy fuckers who can’t aim for shit. I’m going for head shots.” </p><p>“WE ARE ON ROUND 14. WE NEEDED THE CROWD CONTROL.”</p><p>“You need the crowd control. I don’t need shit.” </p><p>Ginny had no idea what she was witnessing, or why no one was stopping Marcus and Preston from screaming bloody murder at each other. She looked at Hunter with confusion and horror, waiting for him to explain.</p><p>He was looking at the pair like they were tiny little kittens sharing a bowl of milk. Could he not see what was happening?! Why were they letting this happen?!</p><p>“Awwww! They’re bonding!” he whispered, not taking his eyes off them at all. His voice was so proud and excited, Ginny was worried that he was too drunk to understand what was happening. He couldn’t be looking at the same scene that she was, could he?</p><p>“Hunter! We have to stop this! They’re being really horrible to each other!” Ginny whispered back, preparing to go and break up the literal screaming match between Marcus and their resident psycho. She felt <i> awful. </i> Marcus had done so much to make their day perfect, and she had immediately abandoned him to go sit with her friends, allowing him to be ridiculed and belittled by Hunter’s sociopathic freakshow boyfriend.</p><p>She loved Hunter. Really. But there was something seriously fucking wrong with Preston and Ginny didn’t want his vitriol being spewed anywhere near Marcus. He’d been through enough and he didn’t need that shit. Ginny would fucking destroy Preston if he thought he could push Marcus out of their group. </p><p> Ginny glared up at Hunter, who had put an arm around her shoulders and was holding her firmly, stopping her from saving her boyfriend from Preston’s psychoticism. </p><p>“Shh! Don’t ruin it. Preston hates these things, let him have this.” he whispered, still unable to tear his eyes away from Preston’s furious expression as he shot at, what looked like, a never ending hoard of zombies. </p><p>“No, Hunter! Marcus didn’t even want to be here in the first place! I’m not going to let your psycho boyfriend scare him away from ever hanging out with my friends again!” she argued, struggling to free herself from Hunter’s surprisingly strong grip.</p><p>He didn’t even look mad that she’d called his boyfriend a psycho. He was still just looking at them adoringly. </p><p>They erupted in screams again when both of their screens went red and Hunter finally let go of her. She moved forward to console Marcus and suggest they leave immediately, but was stopped in her tracks when he got up and stretched with a big smile on his face.</p><p>“I TOLD you you’d need quick revive. We could have made it another 4 rounds at least if you’d been able to revive me quicker that time.” He teased, looking way more relaxed now that the game was over.</p><p>“And I told YOU that I’d last way longer without you dragging me down,” Preston growled in response.</p><p>“LOOK AT THOSE STATS. I got nearly TWICE AS MANY kills as you did,” Marcus pointed out. Was he… laughing? What the hell was going on?</p><p>“Yeah. Well. I got more kill shots. And I killed that giant monster. They don’t put that on the stats. That should count as at least 5 kills.” Preston grumbled in response.</p><p>He got up and stalked towards the kitchen, pausing briefly to look back at Marcus. “Well? I’m not getting you a drink, Princess. You know where the fridge is.” and then he stormed up the stairs.</p><p>Marcus gently put the controller on the sofa, rolled his eyes, and followed Preston upstairs, without even looking at Ginny.</p><p>“What. The fuck. Did I just witness?” </p><p>Hunter let out a happy sigh and clapped his hands together before laughing at Ginny’s horrified expression. “My grumpy boy and your broody boy have just become best friends and it is ADORABLE!” he squealed.</p><p>Ginny shook her head in denial. “Nope. No! That’s not… they were SHOUTING at each other!!”</p><p>“It’s an intense game. That was some fine teamwork though. I never make it past round 10. I think Press gets a bit freaked out when I’m downed and then he rushes to revive me and ALWAYS ends up getting killed because he’s never watching his back. He’s a bit of a romantic that way,” he finished with a dreamy smile.</p><p>Ginny shot him a look of disgust. “Yeah. Sounds <i> real </i> romantic.”</p><p>“And now they’ve gone for a juice break together! It’s so adorable!” Hunter continued, ignoring Ginny’s barb.</p><p>“No. No way! Marcus is <i> not </i> going to be friends with Preston. There’s no way. I mean, no offence, but Preston is SUCH an asshole! Why can’t Marcus be friends with you? Or Jordan??” she complained. </p><p>“Hey! Preston’s been through a lot, you can’t judge him based on a bad couple months.” Hunter turned to look at her seriously, all traces of joviality lost for a moment. “He’s been really isolated recently, okay?” His voice dropped down to a whisper. “Imagine finally letting people know a really difficult truth about yourself, and immediately losing every member of your family as a result. It’s been shit, okay? Just… let him have this weird broody friendship if that’s what he needs. Please?” </p><p>And now <i> Ginny </i> felt like the asshole. She hadn’t considered what a big deal it would be for Preston… coming out, and basically having to move in with his boyfriend because his family disowned him. </p><p>“How is he doing? Really?” she asked, as they moved to sit on an empty sofa.</p><p>Hunter let out a sigh. “He’s… adapting, I guess? He and my mom are really close now. She always had a bit of a soft spot for him, you know? But now it’s like… her mom instincts have kicked in and she just wants to protect him from everything. He’s never had that before. It’s… good for him. I think. But I think it also makes him feel really shit about his own family, even though my family have all but adopted him. I dunno. Things are weird for us.”</p><p>“Do you regret… I mean, I know it’s good for you to be able to be together openly now, but… Do you regret coming out? I’m sorry if you felt pressured because of me. I really didn’t mean to force your hand like that..” she whispered, the guilt pouring out of her.</p><p>Hunter smiled and shook his head before pulling her into a strong hug.</p><p>“No. Not for a moment. It was… killing him. Killing us, having to stay hidden and keep it secret. It’s been such a huge relief, being able to FINALLY show the world how much he means to me.” He pulled back and smiled gratefully at her. “Also, you may not have noticed, but he’s been going out of his way to be nice to you, ever since you yelled at me after Battle of the Bands. I don’t think he’s ever had anyone but me stand up for him before, so he’s become pretty protective over you.”</p><p>Ginny raised an eyebrow sceptically. She found that <i> incredibly </i> difficult to believe. Not the part about no one standing up for him - I mean, seriously. The dude is terrifying. No one would <i> ever </i> need to stand up for him. - but the part about him being nice to her? He’d barely said two words to her.</p><p>“Yes, seriously! I mean, he’d never be nice to your face, but if anyone makes a comment that could be even <i> seemingly </i> disparaging about you, he will fuck them up - verbally and physically. He even yelled at me when I complained about you and Marcus the other day. Barely spoke to me for a full day until I apologised. That’s basically Preston-speak for ‘I love you, Ginny Miller. I would die to protect you.’” He nodded his head knowingly, as though what he had just said made any sense at all.</p><p>“You realise that’s insane, right?” Ginny responded.</p><p>“Hey, I don’t make the rules - I’m just letting you know. If you complain about Marcus mistreating you in any way, and Preston overhears it… you might never see your boyfriend again. Because Press will kill him for you. It’s a public service announcement more than anything.” </p><p>Hunter laughed at the terrified and incredulous look on Ginny’s face but he wasn’t taking it back or letting her know that he was joking. He <i> was </i> joking, right? He HAD to be joking!</p><p>Before she could press him further, the boys returned with drinks and snacks. Marcus handed her a drink and Preston threw a giant bag of Doritos at her. She looked up at Hunter, bewildered, and he just laughed out loud.</p><p>Blue Doritos were her favourites. She was pretty sure she’d never mentioned that specifically to anyone in their friendship group, because people always yelled at her for having terrible taste in chips when they found out. Even <i> Marcus </i> didn’t know about that.</p><p>She looked up at Preston, confused, but he was focusing on the game and studiously avoiding eye contact.</p><p>Would she have even made that connection if Hunter hadn’t just told her that Preston didn’t hate her? Not only did he, apparently, not hate her, but he actually kind of liked her?</p><p>Ginny had no idea what to do with this information. A part of her was still suspicious that he might have poisoned the Doritos, knowing that no one else would want them apart from her. Regardless, she opened the packet and started munching happily before offering some to Hunter.</p><p>“No. Those are disgusting. And you are disgusting for eating them near me.” he groused as he tucked into his carrot sticks and hummus. Ginny smirked and dipped a chip in his hummus, causing Hunter to let out a groan.  </p><p>They cuddled together as they watched their grumpy boys playing video games together, smack talking each other the whole time.</p><p>This had to be the weirdest date of Ginny’s entire life. In fact, it was so perfect, she was pretty sure she never needed to go on another date for the rest of her life. This was the date to top all other dates, and she could happily go without anymore dating indefinitely. Forever.</p>
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<a name="section0073"><h2>73. Chapter 73</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Hey guys! sorry it's been so long since I updated this one. There are some plot things I was trying to work through, and I kinda tested them out with my other fic, so... I was focusing more on that one while I tried to figure it out. I <i> think </i> I've got it sorted, now, so I will be updating this slightly more regularly, but probably still just on the weekends! </p>
<p>We are in the endgame, now!! I have ideas for the sequel which I'm FINALLY going to be able to start plotting once I find a way to get to the end of this story in a satisfying way. I'm kinda excited to write about where I think Ginny's going to be going in season 2??? I feel like I've been hinting at it pretty hard throughout both of my fics. No spoilers though. I'll wait til Book 2 to reveal all my secrets!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>They really did end up staying for just an hour. By the time they got home, it was only about 9pm. Ginny’s house was completely dark, suggesting that Georgia was out somewhere, again. There was no way that she’d be asleep so early on a Saturday night.</p>
<p>“Sleep with me tonight?” Ginny suggested as he walked her up to her house. “Not… we don’t have to do anything sexual, I just want to stay with you for longer.” she clarified when she saw his eyes widen.</p>
<p>“Yeah. Definitely. I just need to go home and let my mom think I’m getting ready for bed. I’ll see you in about 20 minutes?” he proposed.</p>
<p>“Perfect. That’ll give me enough time to shower and get ready for bed. I’ll leave my window open,” she said. When it looked like Marcus was ready to head back home, Ginny grabbed his hand and pulled him back towards her.</p>
<p>“Today has been… incredible, Marcus. Really. I have no words. I loved it. I love you. So much.” she breathed out, not ready to see him go quite yet. She knew he’d be back in 20 minutes, but that felt like too long to her. He leaned in to kiss her lips, softly, gently - but it soon became a passionate embrace, leaving them both panting after a few minutes.</p>
<p>“Mmm, fuck, Ginny. I don’t want to leave you,” he grumbled between kisses, “And you’re not making this easier.”</p>
<p>Ginny wrapped her arms around his shoulders as he put his hands on her lower back. They were pushed together completely, rubbing against each other, when Marcus decided to lift her up and press her against the wall. Her legs wrapped around his waist and Ginny let out a moan as he pressed his hardness into her.</p>
<p>“Ohhhhh fuckk. Marcus, fuck, so good. We can’t - uh, we can’t fuck here. Anyone could see!” Ginny panted as he pressed his lips on her neck, kissing and sucking and biting her into a frenzy. </p>
<p>“Nnnng shouldn’t have kissed you. Can’t leave you now. Can’t get enough,” he groaned as he thrust up against her. He could feel how wet she was, still, or already, through her panties. She was so fucking responsive to him. How was he supposed to resist her when she was just constantly ready for him?</p>
<p>“Inside. Quickly. Fuck, please. Just… We can’t do it here!” Ginny squealed, as she felt his fingers reach down to her clit. She had to squeeze his hand to get him to stop. He slowly let her down, their lips still connected, as she grabbed her keys and opened the door.</p>
<p>The door had barely closed when Ginny found herself wrapped around Marcus again, her panties pulled to the side as he shoved his thick cock into her in one smooth motion.</p>
<p>“Uhhhhhhhhhnnnnggggg” they moaned simultaneously. </p>
<p>“Yessss. Fuck me. Need you. Fuck, love you so much, Marcus!” Ginny whispered as he slowly thrust in and out of her, grinding his hips into her as he pressed her against the wall. “Fuuuuuuuuuuuuck, faster. Please, baby. Need it hard. Ughhh, can’t get enough. Harder, Marcus. Fuck, harder!” </p>
<p>Ginny was caught in a silent scream as he fucked her, hard, into the hallway wall. He always found the perfect spot inside her to drive her wild, and Ginny could never get enough once the pleasure started building inside her. </p>
<p>She didn’t know whether it was because he was worried about the noise, or if it was just something he wanted to do, but when Marcus held his hand over her mouth and whispered, “Shhhh, we have to be quiet. Don’t want to get caught, do we?” she felt her pussy clench as her orgasm rushed through her.</p>
<p>“So good, Ginny. Feel you coming on my cock,” he whispered into her ear as he thrust erratically into her, hand still pressed against her mouth. She wanted to scream into his hand, but knew he was right. They needed to be quiet. Instead, she had to channel that scream into heavy breaths, which came out more as high pitched whining. </p>
<p>It wasn’t exactly silent, but it was the best she could do when she felt so much warmth rushing through her.  </p>
<p>“Mmmm. Know you want to scream for me.” he panted. “Ughhh, love hearing you scream, Ginny.” his thrusts were getting wilder and Ginny could feel herself being pushed straight into another orgasm. Between the feeling of his cock and the filthy words he was whispering into her ear, she was being pushed to higher and higher levels of eroticism. </p>
<p>“Being so good for me, now. Nnnnggg, gonna come in you,” he groaned, thrusting faster and faster as he held her hip in a tight, bruising grip, his hand on her mouth pushing her harder into the wall. “Such a good girl, Ginny. Fuck!” he took his hand off her mouth and replaced it with his lips, shutting them both up as he groaned into her mouth.</p>
<p>His hands crushed her body to his as he thrust harder and harder into her, pushing her right over the edge as she felt him coming inside her. Ginny squeezed her legs around him, but she couldn’t stop the high pitched squeals leaving her throat, even as their lips were pushed together in a bruising kiss.</p>
<p>They stayed like that, completely connected, stroking and touching each other as they came down from their orgasmic high. Their kisses became more leisurely and teasing as their breathing calmed.</p>
<p>Ginny let out a little giggle as Marcus started leaving soft kisses on her neck and along her jaw. His hand was stroking the skin on her stomach, going up to her bra, lightly tweaking her nipple, before innocently returning to her hip. She felt his cock twitch inside her when she let out a breathy moan, and she lightly ground her hips against him, feeling the pressure of his softening cock hitting the spot inside her that made her want to scream.</p>
<p>Marcus let out a growl against her ear and held her hips firmly in his hands to stop her movement. “Don’t even think about it, Ginny Miller.” he ordered.</p>
<p>Fuck, Ginny had no idea why his commanding tone of voice was setting her off. She <i> hated </i> being told what to do. But when Marcus was inside her, calling her a good girl for being quiet as he whispered absolute filth in her ear… yeah. That was definitely something Ginny needed to explore. Greatly. And in much detail.</p>
<p>“Mmmm I’m not doing anything!” she whined, still trying to move her hips despite his strong hold on her.</p>
<p>“Ginny. I <i> need </i> to go home. I can’t do that if we don’t stop… Nnnngggg… fucking.” he sighed as he felt his cock hardening again inside the insatiable girl in front of him. </p>
<p>“Mmmm but I liiiiike it, Marcus. It feels <i> really, really </i> good.” she breathed, teasingly.</p>
<p>Marcus bit her neck in response, mumbling something that sounded a lot like ‘insatiable minx,’ which Ginny struggled to hear over the sound of her breathy moans. </p>
<p>“You,” he said more loudly, pausing to kiss her lips, “Need to practise some restraint,” he teased as he slowly pulled away from her, righting her clothes and lowering her to the ground.</p>
<p>“Meanie.” she pouted as she watched his cock hungrily.</p>
<p>“Ughhhh Ginny, you can’t look at me like that,” he complained, wrestling his hard cock back into his boxers. That was going to be fucking uncomfortable. </p>
<p>“I can’t help it. You’ve unleashed my horniness and it cannot be contained.” She responded primly, still staring at the outline of his cock through his jeans and biting her lower lip. </p>
<p>Marcus walked closer to her and tilted her chin up so she had to look him in the eye. He smirked down at her as her eyes narrowed at him, and he used his thumb to pull her bottom lip from her teeth, stroking it gently as he stared temptingly at her mouth.</p>
<p>“I <i> have to </i> go home so my mom doesn’t think I’ve kept you out all night, Ginny. She’ll never let me near you again if she thinks I kept you out all day and night. I swear, the woman is more protective over you than she is over me and Max - her actual children,” he teased in a whisper. </p>
<p>Ginny was still pouting up at him as she crossed her arms over her chest. “Fine,” she grumbled, having no idea why she was acting like such a brat. They’d been together for almost 15 hours straight, she was exhausted, and what he was saying made total sense.</p>
<p>“Don’t be like that,” he pleaded teasingly, poking at her cheeks, “I’ll be back in 20 minutes. It’s not like I want to leave you. I just want to make sure we can keep seeing each other all the time, and we can’t do that if we’re grounded,” he reasoned, drawing a small smile from her. </p>
<p>Ginny let out a hugely put upon sigh. “Fiiiine. But I want you back in less than 20 minutes. 15 minutes, tops!” she bargained, and he let out a little laugh.</p>
<p>“I’m glad to see you’re not sick of me yet,” he joked, and Ginny reached up to stroke his cheek.</p>
<p>“I’ll never be able to get enough of you,” she whispered seriously, looking deeply into his eyes. Marcus’ breath hitched in his throat as he took in the seriousness of her expression. He still wasn’t used to being seen and cared for so deeply. It caught him off guard every time he realised how overwhelmingly in love he was with the girl in front of him.</p>
<p>He leaned down and rested their foreheads together, closing his eyes. “You make it <i> really </i> hard to leave you, you know that?” he complained.</p>
<p>“Sorry not sorry,” she responded cheekily and he could hear the smile in her voice. It made him feel all warm and gooey inside.</p>
<p>He took a deep, sobering breath, kissed her head, and stepped away from her. “15 minutes.” he sighed, “I’ll be back, but you better be in your PJs and ready for bed when I next see you,” he ordered. </p>
<p>Ginny swallowed hard and nodded, “O-okay. I can definitely do that,” she whispered, leaning closer to him involuntarily.</p>
<p>“Good.” he intoned, huskily, and Ginny felt a shudder run through her. He placed a quick kiss on her lips, told her he loved her, and left before she could do anything else to tempt him into staying.</p>
<p>Ginny stared longingly at the door for a few more seconds before running upstairs to shower. She needed to be showered, teeth brushed, and ready for bed in 15 minutes!</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I'm not being paid with money to write this story, but the comments are giving me LIIIIIFE :). Thank you so much for liking and commenting and reading.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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